Beyond the crime lab: The Little Miracle
by EmilysMiamiSunrise
Summary: Calleigh has something very important to tell Eric. What will he say when he finds out she is expecting? Please no plagiarizing! It's not nice!
1. Chapter 1

Beyond the Crime Lab:

The Little Miracle

Part 1: Realization

"Something's not right," thought Calleigh as she processed evidence in her firearms lab in late July. "I just at an hour ago, how am I possibly hungry again?" Calleigh finished up what she was doing and fished two quarters from her purse, went up to the break room and got a candy bar from the vending machine.

Five days and many trips to the vending machine later, Calleigh finally got the courage to confide in someone she trusted. She quickly dialed Alexx's number and told her about her change in appetite and how she felt tired even after a good night sleep.

"Oh honey," Alexx started, "baby you need to go to your doctor. I mean, is it possible you're...?"

"No...I...well, yeah maybe. Oh God Alexx I can't be." Calleigh replied.

"Are you having any other symptoms?" Alexx asked.

"Well, yes. Um... can we meet up for lunch? We haven't talked in two months, do you have any free time?" Calleigh answered.

"For you dear, I have all the time in the world." Alexx told her.

Three hours later, Calleigh and Alexx met for lunch at a tiny café where Calleigh told all her thoughts and feelings. Alexx encouraged Calleigh to talk to her doctor to make sure everything was okay. If it was what she thought it was, she would have to take the necessary precautions to keep herself safe.

Shaking, Calleigh waited in her doctor's office until her name was called. A little while later, it was confirmed that she was, in fact pregnant. About 6 weeks along. Of course, Calleigh knew it. She was very in tune with her body. She just kept convincing herself it couldn't be the thing that her body kept telling her that it was. Mind racing, she headed back to the lab. How would she? Who would she? Well, she knew **who** to tell, it was just a matter of when.

"Eric, how about dinner at my place tonight?"

Calleigh found him busily working, eyes furrowed in concentration, his lips slightly apart, wearing a red button-up shirt. He looked amazing and Calleigh couldn't help but blush.

"Sure, say around seven?" Eric answered.

"That would be perfect." Calleigh answered.

At five minutes to seven, Eric rang Calleigh's doorbell. She let him in and the two sat on the couch. They stared at each other for a second before Calleigh's stomach growled.

"Whoa! Someone's hungry" started Eric, "Let's eat!"

"Oh my God, how does he know?! No wait he doesn't know, there's no way. Okay Calleigh, get a hold of yourself." she thought. Before she knew it, her mouth went ahead of her mind.

"Eric I'm pregnant!" she blurted out and fell onto the couch in a heap, crying.

"Eric, I'm so sorry. I..."

Not exactly knowing what to do, Eric breathed in and pulled Calleigh as close to him as he could.

"Sorry? You don't have to be sorry. Oh, Cal, no. Don't be sorry." He rocked her back and forth in his arms for two or three minutes before Calleigh pushed herself off of him just enough to look into his huge brown eyes. She remembered how he made her feel everyday for the last six years. As co-workers, friends, then a bit more than friends. She felt so relaxed in his arms. Finally, she spoke.

"Eric, this baby is yours. I'm positive. I'm sorry. I guess I messed up your life and mine. What are we going to do about work? What do we do now? I'm so scared."

"Calleigh, wait. You didn't mess up anything... not my life and not yours. There are plenty of busy moms and dads out there and the way I see it, this just speeds up the process." Eric said with a twinkle in his eye. "Now please, let's eat."

Eric pulled Calleigh to her feet, held her hand and led her to her dining room. He then went into her kitchen, fixed two plates - a little more for Calleigh - and walked back into the dining room, sat down and looked into her vivid green eyes; full of power and beauty. He loved her, now more than he ever thought he could and now knowing that she, Calleigh Duquesne, was pregnant with his baby made him happier than he'd ever been.

"Wow, so where do we begin? We have a lot of people to tell." Calleigh began, eating quickly to ward off that shaky and queasy feeling that gnawed at her most of the day.

"I know," Eric replied. "Cal, I don't want you to get yourself stressed out. Just relax and we'll figure out what to do tomorrow. Let's just be together tonight and not worry about anything."

Eric and Calleigh spend the evening watching T.V. before Calleigh fell asleep with her head on his chest. She only woke up once and Eric held her hair out of her face as she queasiness got the best of her. Eric then learned that the term "morning sickness" didn't always mean it happened in the morning.

The next morning Eric woke up a little before his sleeping beauty. It was amazing how one night had changed his life (and hers) and that soon, their world would be very different. Eric ran his fingers lightly over her stomach tracing a heart around Calleigh's belly button. He smiled as she breathed in deeply and opened her eyes.

"Hey" Eric said

"Hey to you" Calleigh replied sitting up. "I'm so hungry... again"

"Well, looks like we have 2 hours before we have to go in to work. What would you like, and I'll make it for you?"

"Right now cereal sounds really good, but you know I can do it myself" Calleigh replied.

"Not another word." Eric said, getting up, putting his shirt back on and going to the kitchen to fix her cereal.

After breakfast, Calleigh and Eric drove to his apartment so he could put on new clothes. The two decided that they should tell their boss as soon as possible so Calleigh and her unborn child would be safe from danger considering that their job could be far from safe sometimes. By noon it was decided that Calleigh would not have to go out in the field, use any dangerous chemicals or have to interrogate suspects. She would also have to give up her gun lab for the next few months until the baby was born.

As worried as Calleigh and Eric had been about sharing their news, they received hugs and congratulations from all of their friends and co-workers and of course their boss - who couldn't stop smiling. Eric's parents and Calleigh's father were elated as well.

Part 2: Growing

When Calleigh was 12 weeks pregnant, Eric's apartment lease ran out, Ryan offered to help Eric move his furniture into Calleigh's house. They had been living at her house since they found out, but waited until his lease ran out to move everything in. That was one more piece of the puzzle put together. Now things seemed more real than they had. They were really doing this!

The weather in Miami had gotten a touch cooler to allow September to make it's presence known. Most nights after work Eric would fix dinner, the two would eat, and then they would take slow walks on the beach.

"Eric, Calleigh started, "I am so glad this happened to us. I haven't been this happy in a long time." She rubbed her slightly protruding belly and looked at him.

"Me too," Eric replied, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a beautiful diamond ring. He got down on one knee and said, "You are the mother of my child and the most perfect woman in the whole world. I love every part of you. Calleigh Duquesne, will you marry me?"

A huge smile spread across her face as she carefully took the ring from his fingers and pulled him up onto his feet again."Eric Delko, yes, I will marry you, you hot thing, you!"

Eric just laughed and their lips met gently.

So then, a month later, Calleigh Duquesne because Calleigh Duquesne Delektorsky. But as Eric had done, preferred to have her last name as Delko. She kept her name Duquesne on her lab coat just as a personal preference. At 4 months pregnant Calleigh was anxious to find out if she and Eric would have a boy or a girl. As long as it was healthy, it didn't really matter.

During her long shifts at the crime lab, Calleigh worried if Eric was okay when he was out in the field. She never worried about like she did now. There was just so much at stake. She longed to be back in her "home" – the firearms lab, but knew it wasn't a good idea. Just in case something were to happen. She would watch from afar as a night shift employee worked with guns and analyzed striations. Wishing she could be the one doing it. She thought she started to feel her baby kick her from the inside one day as she watched. "Yeah, yeah, I feel you sweetie." she said. "You're imagining being out here while I'm wishing I was in there! Let's go find your daddy and get something to eat." Her lab coat covered her stomach, but it would be like that for very much longer.

Eric noticed Calleigh's stomach was starting to show a little more and that she kept having to buy new clothes that fit over their tiny miracle inside Calleigh's stomach. He loved that her hair was shinier than ever and that she seemed to glow. A little before Thanksgiving, Calleigh and Eric were pleased to find out that she was carrying a girl. They fought teasingly over what to name their little girl. One week it would be Alyssa, the next it would be Elizabeth. They started thinking their little one would come into the world and never have a name that they both liked.

As Calleigh's stomach grew to accommodate their little angel, she and Eric's walks on the beach became shorter and shorter, however, the bond between Eric and his new wife became stronger and stronger. It was as if they were meant to be together and this little girl who would be coming in early April was making that happen, just a little quicker than either of them thought.

Part 3: Happiness

In February, Ryan and Natalia threw a baby shower for Calleigh and Eric. Beautifully wrapped presents in pink, purple and yellow bags and boxes were stacked on a table. Many other friends of Calleigh and Eric's came, not just their co-workers. Usually baby showers were more for ladies to attend, but Eric was way too excited to let Calleigh open the gifts. Plus, Ryan begged him to come so he wouldn't be the only male there. There were many smiles and much laughter as they opened the presents and passed them around for everyone to see. Calleigh's favorite gift was from Natalia who gave her a silver bracelet for the baby and a necklace with a tiny carriage on it for Calleigh. Eric seemed to be entranced with all the teeny-tiny outfits that his new little girl would soon be wearing.

After the shower, Calleigh and Eric, with help from Eric's mother took all of their presents home and sank down onto the couch from sheer exhaustion. Eric's mother left and finally the two had some well-deserved quiet time alone. Eric rubbed his hand gently over Calleigh's stomach. "Hello, sweetheart," he said. "We can't wait to meet you, just a few more weeks and we'll finally see you." He felt her move and his heart just about melted.

"Do you really think she can hear me?" he asked.

"Yeah, she can hear you! Some moms put headphones on their bellies and let their babies hear music, we should try it one day." Calleigh answered, smiling.

In early March, Calleigh decided to go ahead and take time off of work to get ready for the baby. It was getting harder for her to be on her feet for such a long time and she was having trouble sleeping. She didn't want that to make her mess up something at work. Some days Alexx would come over and the two would chat and drink tea. Once Eric took a "sick" day when he was perfectly fine. She also had a friend from down the street stay with her as well when it became closer to her due date just to be safe. That was more Eric's suggestion and it made Calleigh love him even more just because he cared so much for her.

March 27th started out ordinary. Eric got up at 5:45 a.m. and took a shower. He made sure to be quiet to allow Calleigh to continue sleeping. He was in the kitchen making coffee when he heard, "Errrrrrrrriiiiiiiiiic!!"

Dropping his coffee mug which crashed to the floor he ran as fast as he could to the bedroom. "What, Cal, where are you?!" he asked.

"I'm in the bathroom. I'm pretty sure my water just broke." Calleigh answered with a shaky voice.

As he entered the bathroom door he saw her standing there, eyes wide and completely terrified looking. "Okay, okay we've got everything ready. Let's call your doctor and see what to do. Come here, you need to sit down." Eric said as he grabbed his cell phone and quickly dialed her doctor. His hands now shaking. With Calleigh now sitting on the bed he talked to Calleigh's doctor who told them to get their bags and head to the hospital. At 6:55 a.m. they were admitted and the two were in a room where Calleigh was given a hospital gown and an I.V. was started.

Eric called his parents and Calleigh's dad. For a while, the two were alone in their room unless a nurse came in to check Calleigh. Eric's mom and dad popped in to say hello and waited in the waiting room with Calleigh's dad. Calleigh actually managed to sleep a little between contractions that weren't too terrible yet. Her high threshold for pain helped out as well... but not for long.

Almost asleep himself, Eric was awoken by someone grabbing his hand and breathing in sharply. It was Calleigh. "Eric, Eric, Eric, oh my god, ooooooh, Eric OOOOW!! Okay this one is bad!" He looked at the clock (9:34 a.m.) and then poked his head out of their door and saw a nurse. He waived her in their room where she checked Calleigh and found that she was 5 centimeters dilated. Calleigh then decided that she didn't want to go much further without an epidural. Before the anesthesiologist could come in another contraction hit her like nothing she'd ever felt before.

"Eriiiic, OOOOOOOOOW, please Eric, help."

"Honey he's coming and I promise you will feel better, it's okay, just breathe." Eric said as he rubbed her leg.

"DON'T touch me!" Calleigh half yelled. "Just AAH, Eric, I'm sorry. Please don't be mad. AAH! Oh God. Eric, will you hold my hand?"

Eric meekly gave her his hand afraid of being yelled at again or worse. She looked up at him with the most pleading eyes and he felt like he was the most powerless person in the world.

"Breathe, Cal, breathe. You have to breathe." Eric said. Calleigh kept holding her breath. Eric's heart was racing. He hated seeing her in so much pain. Having her yell at him scared him to death. He just wanted this to be over and to be able to hold his little girl in his arms. He wanted to run out and find the doctor and MAKE him give her the epidural so she'd feel better. What was taking so long?

Finally, the anesthesiologist came in and gave Calleigh the epidural. It was just before 10:00 a.m. She was checked and was still 5 centimeters dilated. The epidural made her feel so much better. She managed a smile and that eased Eric's worries as well. Eric sat beside her and watched TV while she slept peacefully. She only woke up when her nurse came in to check on her. Natalia called Eric's cell phone for an update. Nothing new yet, he told her, but he'd let her know as soon as anything happened.

Eric wondered how long labor could actually be. He had heard from some people that it took many, many hours but that some women breezed through it. He hoped Calleigh would be like that. She'd done so well so far. He text messaged his mother's cell phone asking if she could bring him something to eat. He'd remembered he and Calleigh hadn't eaten anything that day. Eric's mom brought him a sandwich which he ate on the far side of the room. One, so he wouldn't wake Calleigh and two, so she wouldn't see him eating.

Late in the evening, a new nurse came in and checked on Calleigh. She was fully dilated at 10 centimeters. It was time to push. The room was set up for her to deliver and her epidural was lessened so she'd feel the contractions and be ready to push. Her doctor came in and got her and Eric ready.

"Okay, Calleigh. When your next contraction comes, I want you to push." Her doctor told her. She nodded her head in agreement.

As the contraction came, Calleigh said, "Eric, I need you up here NOW!"

Eric grabbed her hand and she pushed while he and her doctor and the nurse counted to ten. Four more good pushes later, her doctor told her the next one would be it. When the next contraction came, Calleigh was ready. She gave it her best. Halfway through the push, she screamed out in pain and dug her nails into Eric's hand.

"Calleigh, come on, she's right there. Come on honey, come on." Eric said.

As she pushed, their little miracle finally made her presence into the world. She was cleaned up and handed to her daddy who gave her tiny head a kiss and laid her into her mommy's arms. "Here ya go, mommy!" Eric said, tears in his eyes.

"Wow, Eric she looks just like you!" Calleigh replied, tears in her eyes as well. "Welcome to the world, Adriana Caroline!" she said. "Look how blue her eyes are, oh my God she's perfect!"

"Just like her momma." Eric said.

Adriana was beautiful. A touch of her daddy's Cuban skin tone and teeny tiny black curls. She was the spitting image of him. She seemed to look at Calleigh and Eric as they smiled down at her. So happy to finally be a family.

Part 4: Home

Eric and Calleigh were allowed to go home 2 days after Adriana was born. Eric carefully placed a sleeping Adriana in her car seat, then helped Calleigh into the back seat of their car so their little angel wouldn't be alone. They pulled out of the hospital and were on their way home. For a minute the two were totally silent, then Eric heard a sniffle, looked in the rearview mirror and discovered that Calleigh was crying.

"Aww, Cal, what's wrong?" he started.

"It's just... so... weird. I mean, she's here, and we're her parents and this is actually happening. We can't just hold her and then give her back to her mom. She's ours...to keep... forever and ever. Ahh stupid hormones! I don't even know why I'm crying." Calleigh answered back.

"What's she doing right now?" Eric asked.

"Just sleeping. I thought she was waking up, but she's in dreamland. Whatever newborns dream about, she's dreaming about it. She looks so peaceful. I'm so in love with her."

Eric pulled into their driveway, stopped the car and gingerly took Adriana out of her car seat. His mother was waiting for them to arrive home and she helped Calleigh out of the car and lead her to the couch. She hurried back to the kitchen and started preparing a lunch for them. Calleigh smiled and closed her eyes for a second but Adriana had other plans. She didn't cry loud, just enough for her mom to know she needed something. It had been about an hour and a half since she'd eaten so Calleigh took her to her room to feed her. When she was done, Calleigh brought her back out to the living room and laid her in Eric's arms so she could get some lunch.

Adriana opened her tiny eyes and looked at Eric as if to say "hey dad!".

"Hello, sweetheart. How are you? You are so pretty. Look at your eyes. Hey, hey Adriana. Can you see me?" He put his finger on her hand, she opened her hand up and closed her fist around his finger. She closed her eyes and drifted back off to sleep. Eric held her for a good hour before Calleigh begged him to let her hold their daughter.

Five days later, a familiar gold Hummer pulled into their driveway as Calleigh sat upstairs with Adriana in her arms. Calleigh walked downstairs and saw Eric on the couch, half asleep.

"Eric... hey, hon. Guess who just pulled up?" Calleigh said.

"Mmm?" was all he could manage, being half asleep.

About that time, the doorbell rang, and Eric shot straight up.

"What, Cal, huh?"

"Horatio's here! Ha ha, you are so funny when you get woken up all the sudden," Calleigh said as she went to answer the door.

She opened the door to her boss who had a huge box in his arms.

"Oh, Horatio, you didn't need to do that!" Calleigh said as she opened the door.

"Yes I did. How's the new little Delko? I hear she looks just like Eric. Just what we need, another Eric." Horatio said, smiling. "Adriana, right?" he asked.

"Yes, Adriana Caroline. Would you like to hold her?" Calleigh said, laughing. "She does look a lot like Eric. Here, lets put this box in the kitchen and then we'll go sit in the den."

As they sat down, and Calleigh handed Adriana to Horatio, he said, "I didn't come all this way not to hold a future CSI in my arms. Wow, she's so little. You forget how little they are. Maybe she'll open her eyes for me."

As tough as Horatio was with the hardest criminals in Miami, Calleigh and Eric had never imagined seeing him be so gentle to someone, ever. He touched her hands, and rubbed her cheek with his finger, causing Adriana to move her head to try and nurse on his finger. He spoke softly to her and she opened her eyes and looked at him, they stared into each other's eyes like they had known each other for a long time. "Hey sweet Adriana. How are you today? You are such a lucky little girl to have such awesome parents. How amazingly little are you?!"

"She is tiny isn't she?" Eric said, rubbing his face, trying to pretend like he hadn't drifted off to sleep. No overtime at work was ever this tiring for Eric as it was being a new dad, but he loved every minute of it.

Eric, Calleigh and Horatio talked for a while until Horatio needed to get back to the crime lab. He gave Adriana a kiss on her forehead and gave Calleigh a hug. He said good-bye and was on his way.

As Adriana grew, Eric and Calleigh became more confident as parents. Learning what her cries meant and trying to get on some sort of schedule. When she was 9 weeks old, Calleigh went back to work and Adriana stayed with Eric's mother all day until either Eric or Calleigh would pick her up and take her home. One of the two would feed her and when they were all 3 at home, would wait until it cooled off in the evening, put Adriana in her stroller and walk around the neighborhood. Most nights it would be too warm so the three would lay on a blanket together and Calleigh and Eric would listen to the noises Adriana would make. Her hair, black at birth, was slowly becoming a little lighter in color but the curls remained. She watched intently as her daddy's lips moved as he talked to her. She smiled as her mommy made a toy make noise.

"Aww, Eric! Did you see that smile?" Calleigh exclaimed.

"Yeah. She's so cute when she does that and her eyes get all squinty." Eric answered. He leaned in and gave Adriana a kiss on her cheek. "Hey what about me?" Calleigh said, pretending to pout. He kissed her and said, " I always have a kiss ready for you."

Calleigh smiled and blushed and butterflies fluttered in her stomach the same way they did the first time they met. She couldn't have planned a better life; a loving husband, a beautiful daughter, a great job and a fantastic house. Her eyes met Eric's and they kissed.

THE END!


	2. Sweet Adriana

1

Beyond the Crime Lab: Sweet Adriana

Adriana Delko grew fast. She surprised her parents each day showing them something new she could do. They were thrilled, as all new parents are, when Adriana held her head up by herself for the first time, when she sat up by herself without falling over, and when she decided that she was bored with laying on her tummy, pulled herself up and crawled to get her OWN toy early October the year she was born. She had her mother's determination and her daddy's eyes. She also had new friends. Every time she saw Natalia or Ryan, she would bounce up and down, smile and reach out for one of them to hold her. She would snuggle her head into Natalia's chest, close her eyes and fall asleep. She and Ryan had many, many staring contests as well. He was bound and determined to make Adriana's first word be "Ryan". So far no success!

In January of the following year, Eric, Calleigh and Adriana were at the crime lab. Eric had to grab something from his locker so Calleigh carried Adriana to Horatio's office to chat with him while she waited. Adriana was fussy and did not want to be held.

"Why don't you put her down and let her crawl, she'll be okay as long as we keep the door closed." Horatio told her.

"Are you sure?" Calleigh asked, as she sat Adriana down and gave her a toy. Adriana shook her toy and looked up at Horatio and Calleigh and smiled.

"Look at her," Horatio said, "she's right at home here, isn't she?"

"Yeah she is." Calleigh answered. Then turned her head back to continue her conversation with Horatio.

Not even 15 seconds later, they both turned to Adriana after they heard her laughing loud. Adriana had crawled over to the couch and pulled herself up, looking at Horatio and Calleigh as if to say, "Ha! When you weren't looking, this is what I did! I am soooo smart."

"Oh my God! Adriana! Ha ha ha. Wow we really are going to have our hands full aren't we? Look at you, such a big girl, pulling yourself up there like that. What is your daddy gonna say?" Calleigh said as she whipped out her camera and took a picture of Adriana, still smiling after conquering the couch.

"Guess I'm going to have to childproof my office. Didn't think I'd ever have to do that." Horatio joked.

At that moment, Eric walked in. "What is going on?" He asked.

"Miss thing over here decided she had enough of crawling and pulled herself up on Horatio's couch!" Calleigh answered.

"Awww, sweetie,"Eric said as he picked his almost one year old daughter up, "What do you think you are doing? You're not allowed to grow up. I want you to be my baby forever!" He spun Adriana around and kissed her forehead and sat her back down on the floor. She quickly crawled back to the couch and showed her daddy just how she pulled up before.

Eric just stood there, mouth open. "I can't believe it, wow _Princesa_, you are such a good girl. Ahh, she's going to be walking soon!" he said.

This time, Horatio picked her up. "Adriana," he said, bringing her face right up to his, "You are such a strong little girl. You can climb that couch all you want. It's all yours. Now don't worry your daddy so much. He's new at this."

Adriana responded, much to Calleigh and Eric's embarrassment, by reaching up, taking Horatio's sunglasses and putting them in her mouth. She grinned her little toothless smile at him. Calleigh looked at Eric, then at Horatio, unable to say anything for a moment.

"Oh my gosh," Calleigh said, her face getting redder by the second. "Horatio I am so sorry. I can't believe she just did that!"

Horatio chuckled and handed her to Calleigh. "Not to worry, they needed to be cleaned anyway. Thank you Adriana." He gently took his sunglasses from Adriana's grip and got out a handkerchief, rubbed his sunglasses and placed them back on the top of his head. "So, what's on the agenda for you three this evening?"

"Natalia is supposed to be meeting us at our house at six to watch Adriana. Cal and I are headed to Café Cordoba. We haven't had good Mexican in a while and Adriana doesn't do well in restaurants yet." Eric answered.

"Well, you two have a good time." Horatio said to Eric and Calleigh. Turning to Adriana, he said "Natalia will have her hands full with you, princess, you be a good girl."

Eric and Calleigh just laughed. Calleigh picked Adriana up and the three headed home to meet Natalia.


	3. Words?

Words?

It had been a rough day. Both Eric and Calleigh were tired. They were both ready to crash after working double shifts on a very difficult murder case that had more media attention than if the president himself were visiting Miami. They still needed to pick Adriana up from Eric's mothers house before they headed home.

"She's been fussy today." Eric's mother told them, as they left. "She's got a little bit of a runny nose. Wonder if she's teething."

"Yeah, we noticed that too. She's been chewing on her blanket like there's no tomorrow." Calleigh told her as she placed Adriana in her car seat.

"Mmmmm...mmaa."

"Hey there sweetheart, did you have a good day? Sounds like you have lots to tell us." Calleigh said, snapping her buckle shut and closing the car door.

The whole car ride home Adriana "talked" to Eric and Calleigh or chewed on her fingers. At home, as Eric fed her, Adriana acted as if she didn't like the feel of the spoon in her mouth. Something was definitely going on. Her nose was a little runny and she even went to bed early, much to her parent's pleasure, as they were very tired.

At 9:45, Calleigh headed to bed, Eric not far along after. Calleigh was off to dreamland before her head even hit the pillow.

_She was on a beach laying in the sun, watching Eric swim in the sparkling blue water, diving under and over waves as they crashed near the shore. "Wow, I can finally relax." she thought. _

"_Mmm...mmama?"_

_Her eyes moved from Eric to see a little girl, about 5 years old, walking up to her on the beach._

_Again, "Mama?" A little clearer this time. _

With the third "mama" Calleigh realized that the little voice she heard was real. She shot up in bed. She waited a second, wondering if she'd hear it again.

"Maama mama mama." with a little bit of a cry added to it echoed once more through the hallway into their bedroom.

Pulling back the covers, Calleigh walked into Adriana's bedroom and found her standing in her crib, tears in her eyes, repeating "mama" until Calleigh picked her up and rocked her in her arms.

"Hey, hey mama's here. That's right, I'm your mama, hey sweetheart, it's okay, mama's here. Shhhh" she said as she walked to Adriana's rocking chair. Adriana nestled her head into Calleigh's chest and whimpered. "You are definitely teething aren't you? I can't believe you called me mama." Now it was Calleigh who had tears in her eyes. Her little girl, in pain, had said her first word, and it was "mama". She wanted to wake up Eric and tell him, but knew he needed sleep. Instead she brought Adriana downstairs and got out a teething ring she had put in the refrigerator a week ago.

"Here you go, Adriana, poor thing. Those teeth are getting to you aren't they?" Calleigh said as she walked back up the stairs. She sat down in Adriana's rocking chair and rocked her back to sleep. Placing her gently back into her crib, Calleigh tiptoed out of the room and headed back to her and Eric's room and curled up next to Eric. His warm body next to hers gently lulled her back to sleep.

The next time her eyes opened, sunlight splashed through the bay window of the bedroom. Calleigh stretched and realized Eric was already up. She got up, peeked into Adriana's bedroom, saw that Eric had already gotten Adriana up and headed downstairs. The strong smell of coffee energized her. She turned the corner to see Eric cutting and mashing a banana for Adriana and making himself some toast.

"Mama!" an excited Adriana called out when she saw Calleigh.

"Hey! There's my girl!" Calleigh responded. "Mornin' sweetie" she said, kissing Adriana then hugging Eric before sitting down at the table. "So yeah, last night was interesting Eric, I was dreaming and heard someone calling mama, then I realized it was _real_. When I went into Adriana's room, she was standing up calling for me. I really wanted to wake you up, but I know how much you needed to sleep. Remember how she kept trying to talk to us in the car yesterday? Guess she found what word she was looking for."

"Princesa, can you say dada?" Eric asked his little girl. "Say dada."

Adriana offered Eric some banana instead. "No, not banana, can you say dada?" Eric asked again. "Come on, show me some love too, oh well, that's okay take your time," he said kissing her banana covered cheek.

After breakfast, Eric needed to help his mother at her house for a few hours before lunch. He grabbed his keys and he and Calleigh agreed they'd meet for lunch at home at 12:15.

"Okay, sounds good." Calleigh answered. "I need to go to the store anyway, so Adriana and I will do that and then wait for you to get home."

"Love you both." Eric said kissing his wife and his little girl before shutting the door.

Calleigh blew Eric a kiss from the kitchen window as she wetted a washcloth to clean Adriana's face.

"Da" Adriana replied.

Calleigh just laughed.


	4. The Beach Day

1The Beach Day

_Author's Note: I really wanted Adriana to be a little older in this one, so I'm skipping ahead. The last chapter she would have been almost one. I'm going to make her a little over 2 years old now. Enjoy..._

"Adriana, come here so I can put your sandals on." Calleigh called running after her strong-willed two year old.

"No!" Adriana called back, running playfully away from her mom.

"You have to wear your sandals or the shells will cut your feet and then you'll cry." Calleigh said. "Eric! Will you please help me? We have to meet Natalia and Ryan in 5 minutes!"

"Grrrroowwwl, I'm coming to get you little bit!" Eric called, tickling his daughter and picking her up causing Adriana to squeal with delight.

"Got her," Eric said, coming down the hallway. "Let's get these shoes on and go."

"Shoes?" Adriana replied.

"That's right, little shoes for little feet." Eric answered.

Because they lived so close to the beach, Calleigh and Eric wanted Adriana to become accustomed to the ocean that would be a big part of her life. The Delko family was meeting Natalia and Ryan on the beach for some much needed free time away from the lab. They got their beach bags and headed out the door and started on their short walk to the beach. Natalia and Ryan were already there when they arrived.

"Tata!" Adriana shrieked when she saw Natalia. She let go of Calleigh's hand and ran through the sand, her brown curly pigtails bouncing behind her.

"Hey, girlie! How's my favorite two-year old?" Natalia said, scooping her up. "You ready to play on the beach today?"

"Yes" Adriana replied, smiling. She pointed at Calleigh and Eric. "Mommy come and daddy come."

"I know!" Natalia replied, putting her back down. "I'm so happy you could come!" She went over and helped Calleigh and Eric bring their stuff over to the spot where she and Ryan had laid out their towels and tent.

"Hey Adriana, you wanna help me dig a hole?" Ryan asked her.

She walked over and carefully examined the plastic shovel Ryan had.

"Wyan" Adriana said taking the shovel from him, then handing it back. "Dig?" she asked.

"Oooh I see, you want me to dig a hole for you." Ryan responded.

"Yes," Adriana said back.

When Ryan finished digging a shallow hole, Adriana promptly sat in it and laughed. That only lasted a minute, though, because she remembered that the beach had tons of shells. She got up and ran to Calleigh.

"Mommy, mommy! Sells. Pwease. Get sells." Adriana said pulling her mom with as much power as possible.

"Shells?" Calleigh asked.

"Yes, momma, fill a hole wif sells." Adriana responded already running towards the edge of the water.

"Okay, okay, wait for momma, please." Calleigh said, getting up.

Calleigh caught up to Adriana and asked, "Sweetie, _why_ do you want shells?"

"Fill my hole wif sells." Adriana replied picking up shells and dropping them into her pink bucket.

"Oh okay, let's see how many shells we can find." Calleigh answered holding Adriana's other hand.

Calleigh picked up three small shells and placed them in Adriana's bucket. "One, two, three." she said.

"Two, two, free." Adriana repeated after her.

A few shells later, Calleigh decided the two had walked far enough and she and Adriana turned around and walked back to the others.

"Adriana, can you show Natalia how you can count? Count your shells for Natalia and Ryan." Calleigh said.

"Un, two, free." Adriana replied.

"Very good!" Natalia and Ryan both said, clapping.

Adriana then took her shells and dumped them in the hole Ryan dug for her earlier.

"Sells go in." She happily replied. Then she walked over to Eric and climbed into his beach chair with him. She gave him a great big hug and held his face in her tiny two year old hands.

"Daddy, want water."

"You do? You want to go in the water?" Eric asked.

"Yes" she replied.

"Okay, Cal, Ryan, Natalia. Anyone want to join?"

"Sure, that sounds great. I'm about to roast out here." Calleigh said.

"Me too." Natalia joined in. "Come on Ryan."

They followed Eric, who was holding Adriana, to the water. Even though they were only knee deep in the water, the waves scared her a little bit making her tighten her grip on Eric's neck.

"MOMMY!" Adriana cried. "MOMMY!"

Calleigh came up behind Eric and put her hand on Adriana's shoulder. "Daddy's got you honey, don't be scared. Be a big brave girl for me, okay. He's got you, he's not gonna let you go. See, look everything's okay." she gave her a little kiss as well.

That seemed to calm her down a little bit, plus she was distracted by Ryan who was splashing Natalia. He ended up splashing Eric as well.

"Watch it, Wolfe. You better be glad she's in my arms, 'cause you'd get it right about now." Eric joked.

The four of them, plus Adriana stood in the water and talked for a few minutes before heading back to their towels for a snack. After they ate, Natalia and Ryan offered to take Adriana for a walk, because being two, it was hard for her to sit still for long.

Eric sat on a towel with Calleigh beside him. She moved in closer and put her arm on his muscular chest. " I love you. I'm so glad we got to do this today," she said.

"Love you too, Cal. We definitely needed a day like this." Eric said back, kissing Calleigh on her cheek making her smile.

"So nice of Natalia and Ryan to take Adriana for a walk. Maybe they need one of their own." Calleigh said, jokingly.

"Now that," Eric laughed, "Would be funny. Can you imagine a little Ryan running around?"

"Ha! Yeah that would be hilarious." Calleigh answered.

A little later, Natalia and Ryan strolled up. Ryan was holding a very sleepy Adriana who fell asleep as soon as he handed her to Calleigh. "Thank you." She whispered to Ryan as she took Adriana and put her under their tent so her fair skin wouldn't get burned by the scorching Miami sun.

The four talked about everything from football to cases they'd recently solved until Adriana woke up.

"Mommy, juice?" Adriana said.

"Here, ya go sweetie," Calleigh said, handing her a sippy cup.

"We probably need to get going so we can get cleaned up before dinner." Calleigh said. "Thanks for inviting us to hang out with you guys today," she told Natalia and Ryan.

"Hey, anytime!" Natalia answered.

"Go give Ryan and Natalia a hug, Adriana." Eric said.

Adriana hugged Ryan and then hugged Natalia who gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Bye Adriana, I had fun playing with you today!" she said.

"Bye bye, Tata, Bye Bye Wyan!" Adriana answered then ran to Calleigh and Eric.

"Mommy, pick up." she said, arms reaching for Calleigh who handed Eric the bags and picked up Adriana. "Come here, big girl. Did you have fun today?" she asked.

"Yes." Adriana replied back. "Well, good. Okay, bye guys, we'll see you soon!" Calleigh said to Ryan and Natalia. Then she, Eric and Adriana headed home after a fun afternoon at the beach.


	5. Adriana's Thoughts

This is just something I was thinking of. How would Adriana see her parents? I'm making her 3 years old in this chapter.

My daddy is tall. Taller than mommy, taller than a tree, I think. His skin is darker than mine and mine is darker than mommy's. His hair is dark like mine too. We even have the same eyes.

"_Come here Adriana, let me hold you."_ My daddy lifts me into the air and spins me around like an airplane. He's so strong. He has big muscles that mommy says she likes. I laugh and scream with delight as he tosses me gently in the air and kisses me then puts me back down. _"I love you."_ he says.

" _I love you too, daddy."_ I say back.

Daddy's real name is Eric. He has a gun and a badge. Once I watched him clean his gun while I sat on the bed. Mommy would be mad at him if she knew he let me watch. His job is to keep me and mommy safe. Sometimes he goes to work for such a long time that I get to stay with my friend Natalia and sometimes with my grandma. I call her Abuela. When daddy talks on the phone to my Abuela, he speaks words I don't understand, so I just go find mommy and play with her.

I run and grab a book from my room. Daddy painted my room pink for me before I was born. He says my room is made for a princess and he calls me his little princess.

"_Daddy, read. Pwease._"I ask.

"_Okay, it's almost nap time anyway, Princesa,_" daddy says as he gets my blanket. He picks me up, puts me on his lap and cuddles with me so I am warm. He knows when he reads to me I will fall asleep. He is magic like that, ever since I was a baby, my daddy's deep soft voice has always calmed me down. He is the best daddy in the world.

_**_

My mommy is shorter than daddy. She has to stand on her tippy toes when she hugs him. She has really long, really pretty hair. It's yellow and straight. When I was a baby she used to have to keep it up because I would pull it, but I don't do that anymore because I'm a big girl. Daddy can't keep his hands out of mommy's hair though and he's a grown up! Mommy's eyes are a different color than mine and daddy's too.

"_Hey Adriana! Mommy's home"_ she calls out. I hear her shoes making a "click, click, click" noise as she comes from the kitchen. I love the noise her shoes make.

"_Mommy, mommy, mommy"_ I call back, running down the hall. I took a long nap and now I'm ready to play. Mommy bends down and gives me a big, big hug. I give her a hug back and I don't let go. I miss her so much when she's gone.

Mommy's real name is Calleigh. She has a gun like daddy's and a badge like daddy's. They work in the same place. Mommy has an important job. I heard her talk about bad guys before but she tries not to talk about it near me. I like the way she talks, too. She sounds different than daddy. She tells me that's because she and daddy are from different places than each other, but they met here and loved each other so much they wanted a little girl and that's why I'm here.

"_What did you do today?"_ Mommy asks me.

"_Me and daddy payed house and payed on the 'wings and took a walk and ate and he gave me 4 candies and..."_ I tell her. I am so excited she's home!

"_Whoa! Slow down there! Sounds like you had fun."_ she says back.

Mommy picks me up and carries me into the den.

"_Hey!" _She says to daddy. He stands up and gives her a kiss, so I give them both a kiss. They give me a hug back and ask me what I want to play. I tell them I want to play with blocks. We played blocks for a long time. Mommy always builds houses and daddy and me like to pretend we are monsters and knock them down.

"_Eric!"_ Mommy exclaims. _"You're gonna teach her to be a bully!" _

"_Nah"_ he says back.

"_Adriana, you're not gonna be a bully are you?"_ he asks me.

"_No" _I say back. " _I'm a pwincess."_

Daddy and mommy just smile at me. Daddy is a good daddy and mommy is a good mommy. I help mommy build her house of blocks back. I am so glad mommy and daddy love me and play with me. They are the best mommy and daddy in the world_._


	6. A Miami Christmas

Author's Note: I'm getting into the holiday spirit here! Woo hoo! Thought I'd write a Miami holiday story with my favorite little Delko :o) Hope you like it!

______________________________________________________________________________

A tiny whisper broke the silence early Christmas morning. "Daddy"

Eric felt a finger rubbing his nose, followed by a giggle and a soft voice.

"Daddy"

Eric opened his eyes and saw the dark outline of Adriana's body standing beside him. It wasn't even light outside yet. He didn't want to look at the clock, but he did anyway. 3:27 glared back at him. He turned to look at Adriana in the darkness.

"Adriana, honey it's very early and daddy is tired. Don't you think you need to go back to bed?" he asked.

He knew what she wanted. Calleigh and Eric had been trying to break their 3 year old of this "getting up and crawling into bed with mommy and daddy" routine, but he was just too tired after a double shift to get up and put Adriana back into her bed. He lifted her up and laid her beside him.

"Want mommy." Adriana whispered.

_Figures_, Eric thought, _you wake me up, but you want mommy_.

"No, no mommy. Let mommy sleep." he said. Eric knew better than to wake Calleigh during the night unless it was absolutely necessary. He didn't want to face the wrath that was a tired Calleigh. He'd done that before and it didn't end pleasantly. Eric kissed Adriana's hair and rubbed her back until he was sure she was asleep. _Man, she's such a good kid, would be kinda cool to have another_. He thought as he drifted off to sleep.

The next thing he knew, it was morning. Adriana had somehow gotten in between Eric and Calleigh during the early morning. He glanced at the clock. 7:03. _How'd I manage to be the first one up?_ He thought. He looked over at his wife, brushed a stray blond hair out of her face and kissed her nose.

"Cal," he whispered.

She opened her eyes.

"Merry Christmas, beautiful." he said.

Smiling, she kissed him back. "Merry Christmas. Looks like someone joined us last night."

"Yeah, she wanted you but I wouldn't let her wake you up. Hey, Cal?"

"Mmm?" she answered, running her fingers through Adriana's hair.

"Wouldn't it be fun for Adriana to have a little brother or sister?" Eric asked.

"Ha, well, yeah. I've been thinking about that too. I'm just worried about our job schedules. How in the world would we balance a newborn and Adriana? She'll be four in March." Calleigh responded.

"Remember how scared we were with Adriana. We made it work." Eric said, putting the cutest expression on his face that he could.

"Eric, quit!" Calleigh said, hitting him playfully. "If I gave in every time you used a face like that we'd have ten kids."

"Would that be a problem?" he asked.

"We'd have to open our own daycare in the crime lab." Calleigh joked.

"Hey! We could call it Ballistic Babies!" was Eric's answer to that.

"Eric, you're such a dork!"

"Mommy" Adriana stirred and turned over, cuddling close to Calleigh.

"Hey sweetie, Merry Christmas! Want to go open presents? Let's go see what Santa brought you." Calleigh said, wrapping her arms around Adriana.

"Yes. Daddy comes too. Get up daddy. Want to open pwesents?" Adriana answered, sitting up and pulling Eric's arm.

"Okay, princess let's go." He said, picking her up.

____

An hour and a half later, Calleigh and Eric's living room floor was covered in torn wrapping paper and boxes in every color imaginable. A mess to most, Adriana loved it. She jumped in the pile of paper and crawled around on her hands and knees before spying on Eric through a hole in the paper. She then ran over to him. Eric had just finished putting together Adriana's new play kitchen.

"Let's play house. You be the daddy and I will be the mommy." she said. "I make cerleal."

"Cereal?" Eric asked. "Oh Adriana, I love cereal. Thank you."

"We need to go to work. Where are my keys?" Adriana asked.

"Work, huh?" Eric said with a laugh. "Where do you work."

"Minami-dade police, wif you, silly" she answered.

Eric had to silence the laughter rising up in his chest. He didn't want to hurt her feelings. He wanted to see how far he could take this. "Oh, I see. Uh, what do you do at your work?"

"Get bad guys." she answered laughing.

"What do you do with the bad guys?" he asked.

"Yoooouuu knoooow, daddy! You fro them in jail!" Adriana said.

"Whose going to jail?" Calleigh asked, walking in from the kitchen. "Breakfast is ready, by the way."

"Bad guys. Don't ask." Eric said, smiling. "I'm starving, let's eat!"

______

After breakfast, Eric and Calleigh sat on the couch with their coffee and watched Adriana play. She would come up to them and show them something or point out a color to them and then go back to what she was doing.

"Ding-dong."

"Ah, mommy, doorbell!" Adriana said, jumping up.

"Oooh go see who it is." Calleigh answered, following close behind. She peeked through the window. She knew exactly who it was. She unlocked the door for Adriana.

"Open the door, Adriana, see who it is." she said.

Calleigh helped Adriana turn the door handle, then Adriana pulled the door open and froze, her mouth open wide. There stood Horatio, with a present in his arms.

"Howatio!" She exclaimed.

"Let him in, tell him Merry Christmas." Calleigh told her, holding the glass storm door open for Horatio.

"Mewy Kisstmas." Adriana said, overcome with happiness. She jumped up and down at his feet, never taking her eyes off of him. He knelt down to her level and took his sunglasses off.

"Well Merry Christmas to you to, my dear." Horatio told her. He gave her a big hug. Then picked her up when it was evident she wasn't going to let go. Calleigh led Horatio into the living room where she offered him a seat.

"Merry Christmas and good morning, Horatio." Calleigh said.

Eric stood up and shook Horatio's hand. "Merry Christmas, H." Eric said.

"Thank you, Merry Christmas to you three." Horatio said. "I believe I have something for Miss Delko, who apparently has missed me since you've been clinging to me this whole time. I'm sorry I haven't been able to see you in a while. I have been very busy."

Horatio handed her the box as Adriana jumped off his lap and sat on the floor busily tearing the paper off. With Calleigh's help she took the lid off the box. A little pink tutu skirt lay at the bottom of the box.

"Ooooh pitty!" Adriana exclaimed, picking it up.

"That is pretty. Do you want to try it on? Make sure you tell Horatio thank you." Calleigh told her.

"Tank you, Howatio."

"You're very welcome, sweetie." he responded.

"Mommy help me." said Adriana. She hadn't quite mastered dressing, but with some help was getting quite good. Luckily the tutu was one where she could pull it right up over her jeans and run around like a ballerina or a princess in no time.

"See Howatio, I'm pitty." Adriana said, when Calleigh finished helping Adriana with the tutu.

"Yes, you are. You are beautiful." he told her before she ran off, looking at how the tutu flowed in the breeze while she jumped and ran. It was definitely a good present.

"Horatio, won't you stay for lunch? We've got more than enough and won't have any family over until 3:30 or 4:00. You're very welcome to stay.

"I suppose I could do that." he responded.

Adriana ran back into the room carrying a pretend pan with plastic eggs in it. It was from her new kitchen set. "Howatio," she started, "Will you play with me?"

"Yes, of course, what are we playing?" he asked. "House?"

"Yes. I am the mommy. Daddy is the daddy." she answered. "We will make you food."

"I promise lunch will be more appetizing than plastic eggs." Calleigh said, laughing.

_______

As the day winded down and family and friends went their separate ways, Calleigh, Eric and Adriana laid down on the couch and watched Christmas cartoons. Soon Eric excused himself for a second and came back. He gave Adriana a small red velvet box without Calleigh seeing him and gave Adriana the "shhh" sign, by placing him index finger on his lips. He hoped Adriana would remember what he told her to do earlier.

"Mommy."

"Yes, sweetie" Calleigh said lifting her head.

"Daddy loves you tis much." Adriana said, handing the small box to Calleigh.

"Oh my gosh." she said taking the box from Adriana and lifting the lid revealing a pair of sparking ruby and diamond earrings. "Oh my gosh, Eric." she said whispering, tears in her eyes. "They're beautiful....Eric, you didn't have to..."

Eric cut her off, placing a delicate finger on her lips, then moving his hand to lift her chin slightly. "But I did. I did because I love you and you and Adriana mean the world to me. I'm so lucky that you are my wife and that we made this little girl together. I couldn't ask for anything more. I love you Calleigh."

"I love you too, Eric." she said back, still gazing at the earrings she knew had cost him a fortune.

"Look, mommy." Adriana said, showing her a gold necklace with a tiny gold heart pendant that she was wearing. "Daddy gived me tis, too. I have to be carecul."

"That's right, you have to be careful." Calleigh responded. "Eric, that is the cutest little necklace. You are so thoughtful!"

Eric just smiled. He knew that he had a great life and a wonderful family. It was just fun to surprise Calleigh like that and leave her nearly speechless. It made her that much more beautiful to him. He drew Calleigh in and kissed her, then brought Adriana a little closer and the three enjoyed family time and Christmas cartoons until Calleigh and Adriana fell asleep in his arms. The perfect way to end Christmas day.


	7. Adriana's Accident

Eric woke up to the dreaded sound of the alarm, but relaxed again and smiled as he remembered he had the day off. He opened his eyes to see Calleigh wake up and turn off their alarm.

"Oh, that's right, rub it in, buddy." Calleigh said as she walked past the bed to pick out what she was going to wear that day. She made sure to sway her hips a little just to mess with Eric.

"What? I didn't..." Eric responded.

"Oh, I'm just messing with you." Calleigh said, giving him a quick peck on the lips before closing the bathroom door and jumping in the shower. Eric knew Adriana would hear the shower on and realize her mommy and daddy were awake. Sure enough, he heard the pitter-patter of little feet coming down the hallway before their door opened and a curly brown haired little girl entered the room.

"Daddy!" Adriana exclaimed, jumping on Eric's legs.

"Hey, princess, did you sleep well?" Eric asked.

"Yes I did." Adriana answered.

"Did you know that mommy has to go to work today but daddy doesn't?" he asked.

Adriana's mouth made an "O" shape and she gave Eric a huge hug.

"Can I get in the covers with you?" Adriana asked.

"Yep, come on in." Eric said as he lifted their comforter and sheets to allow Adriana to get under the covers. Eric thoroughly enjoyed the mornings where he could just spend time with his daughter. With the high stress and demands of his and Calleigh's job, it was important for the both of them that Adriana know she was loved and that her parents would always be there for her. Eric and Calleigh both agreed it was nice to escape reality for a little while and hold their little girl in their arms or watch her play with her toys. For a few minutes, Eric and Adriana lay under the covers. He listened to her talk about her toys and about her new friend; a neighbor who had just moved in next door.

"Hey sweetie!" Calleigh said as she opened the bathroom door. "Good morning!" she kissed Adriana and gave her a hug.

"Mommy has to work today, but daddy is going to stay with you!" she said.

"Daddy and me will play all day." Adriana told Calleigh as she got dressed.

"Yep, you guys are gonna have so much fun! I wish I could stay with you two, but I have to go to work." Calleigh told her.

"At the police?" Adriana asked inquisitively.

"Yes. Can you say Miami Dade Police Department?" Calleigh asked.

"Minami...oo...Miami Dade Police Apartment." Adriana answered smiling.

"Haha, close enough. Good girl. That's where mommy and daddy work." Calleigh told her. "Well, I better get going. Want me to make enough coffee for you?" she asked Eric.

"Yeah, that would be great." he told her. "Thanks. We should be up soon, but first we have to check out the cartoon situation."

Calleigh rolled her eyes. "Oh you, you're just a big kid aren't you?" She walked up to Adriana, "Bye sweetie, have a good day with daddy, okay? Take care of him. I love you, Adri, I love you, Eric." She kissed Adriana and Eric and left the bedroom to grab a quick breakfast and some coffee.

The morning passed quickly. Eric and Adriana watched cartoons, ate breakfast and got dressed. They played with her kitchen set and with her baby dolls. Eric made her chicken noodle soup for lunch a little after 11:30.

"Daddy, can we go out-tide?" Adriana asked after the two of them had finished lunch.

"We can after you help me clean up your toys in here." Eric said.

"No, pease can we go?" she asked again.

"Adriana," Eric said with a slight tone, he did not like it when she told him _**no**_ and he didn't like to even barely discipline her, but knew he didn't want an out of control 3-almost-4 year old in his house. He wondered what Calleigh had been like as a child and smiled at the thought._ Probably sweet and sassy. _Even just thinking about it made him chuckle. "We need to do it now. That way it will be done, then mommy won't be mad when your toys are everywhere. Do you understand?"

"Yes, daddy." Adriana answered.

"That's better. Thank you." Eric said, putting a smile back on his face.

Adriana and Eric picked up her toys and headed outside. Eric picked up a magazine on his way out to their backyard where Adriana's swing set was. He sat a chair right beside her swing so he could be right with her as she played. He watched her run around the yard and then try to climb a palm tree she had weeks earlier claimed was her "faborit" (favorite) tree because it looked pretty.

"Adriana, it's not a good idea to climb that tree, you'll fall." He said. "Why don't you come play over here near me?"

Adriana listened and came over to her swing set. Eric helped her go down the small slide and then helped her sit into a swing which wasn't very high off the ground. As an added safety measure, Eric laid mulch down under the entire swing set after he built it. After he helped Adriana into her swing, he sat down in his chair, not even six feet away from her. He gazed down at his magazine and began reading an article, looking up at Adriana every so often who was singing her own version of "Twinkle, twinkle little star".

A sudden thud caught his attention. He saw Adriana out of the swing on her hands and knees on the ground. She wasn't crying, but was drawing up a breath as if she was about to let loose a horrid scream. What came out was not more than a whimper. That surprised Eric a lot. _This is one tough kid._ He thought. He was over to her in less than a second. She stood up on her own power and reached for Eric, who was ready with his arms open.

"Daddy, I fell down." She said still whimpering, as Eric lifted her off the ground and into his arms.

"Okay, you look like you're okay. Let's get you up on the deck and check you out, just to be sure." Eric said, walking up to the house.

Still sniffling, Adriana whispered, "Daddy, my hands hurt." Eric put her down on the deck and looked her over, brushing off her hands and kissing them for good measure. That's when he saw it. Luckily Adriana hadn't noticed it yet. A sharp piece of mulch was barely sticking out of the side of her knee. Eric's heart sank to his feet. The mulch was embedded deep in her skin and he knew he couldn't handle it himself. He knew she was going to need stitches. How he was going to tell her, that was a different story altogether.

"Adriana..." he hesitated, "honey, your knee has a big boo-boo. I know it doesn't look like a big boo-boo, but I think we need to get your doctor to look it." He lied on the last part, he wasn't sure that _her_ doctor would be able to stitch it up, but he didn't want to say_ hospital_ or_ emergency_ _room_, so he had to figure out something.

"Want momm....eeee...!" Adriana cried. "Get mommmeeee!!!"

"Adri, mommy is at work, but I am going to call her. It's gonna be okay, please, please don't touch your knee. Come here." Eric said calmly.

Eric picked up Adriana and took her to his and Calleigh's bathroom and sat her on the toilet. He put a piece of gauze and lightly taped it over her knee and instructed her the best way he knew how to not touch it. He didn't know if she'd listen or not but it was the best he could do. He picked her up and raced into the kitchen, found his keys and his wallet, buckled Adriana in the car seat and sped his way to the hospital. The same hospital where years earlier he lay with a bullet in his head. The same hospital where Calleigh gave birth to their little angel, who was now crying in the back seat of his car with a piece of mulch stuck in her knee.

"Peeze daddy, get mommy." she yelled, frustrated and hurt. " I get it out. I get the 'tick out."

"NO!" Eric remembered to stay calm again and lowered his voice, "No, no don't touch it, Adri! No, baby don't touch it. Listen to daddy, leave it alone." He looked back at her while trying to navigate through the Miami traffic. She hadn't been able to get through the gauze and tape yet which relieved Eric to no end.

Eric found a parking space up front near the emergency entrance. He carried Adriana, who was still crying, in his arms. His heart was racing as he went through the automatic doors and to the desk where he explained what happened. _His baby, his pride and joy was hurt and needed help immediately._ The ER attendant took one look and rushed Eric and Adriana back to a room where a doctor quickly came in to examine Adriana.

"Well, hello there." The doctor said, as he came in. "I'm Doctor Williams." he said, sticking out his hand for Eric to shake. Eric shook with his free hand as he was holding Adriana in his arms on the hospital bed. "And who is this pretty little girl?" The doctor asked Adriana, trying to keep her calm.

"This is Adriana," Eric started. "We had a little accident this afternoon on her swing."

"Oh I see." Dr. Williams said. "Where did you get hurt?" he asked her.

"My knee." Adriana replied softly before she began to cry again. Eric rubbed her arm to try and get her calm down. "Adriana, it's okay, he's gonna help you feel better, okay?" Eric whispered in her ear.

"Can I look at your knee, Adriana? You have such a pretty name. How old are you?" Dr. Williams asked as he peeled back the gauze and tape Eric had applied earlier. He took one look and talked to Eric quietly so Adriana would not hear him. He explained that he would take out the piece of mulch, irrigate the wound and stitch it up. Maybe no more than 4 or 5 stitches would do the trick.

"Okay, I will be right back," he told Adriana. "I m going to get what I need to fix you up and make you all better." With a smile, Dr. Williams left the room. Eric breathed in and let it out slow. He knew she wasn't going to like what was about to happen, but it would be over quickly and she probably wouldn't even have a scar later on.

Dr. Williams was back in less than 5 minutes pushing a small cart with his materials. He did his best so that Adriana wouldn't see the small syringe with the numbing medicine.

"Mr. Delko," he began. "What I want you to do is hold her just like you are doing now so I can take her bandage the rest of the way off and numb her knee. It won't take too long after that for me to stitch her up."

"Okay, I can do that." Eric answered, not really knowing if he liked the idea of holding his daughter down so someone could hurt her, but really, the doctor wasn't hurting her and it had to be done, so he did it. He curled his arms around Adriana and kissed her hair.

"Adriana, Dr. Williams is going to give you some medicine on your knee to make it not hurt, then he is going to fix it. I'm going to hold you the whole time." Eric said.

Dr. Williams picked up the syringe as Eric slightly tightened his grip around Adriana, just enough so she wouldn't squirm. Unfortunately, Adriana saw what was coming.

"NO DADDY, NO DADDY, NO DADDY!" She screamed. "Want mommm....eeee....eeee!!!"

Eric held onto Adriana and tried his best to keep her still.

"Want.....Mommeeeeeeee... mommmmmmmeee!" Adriana cried out. "Daddy... no! Oweee....oweeee... it hurts."

"Adri, Adri, princess, it's okay, shhhhh..." Eric soothed her. "Look, see it's all over. He showed her how Dr. Williams put the last of five stitches into the side of her knee. He placed a piece of gauze and tape over her knee as well.

"There ya, go Adriana. You did such a good job. I am all done." Dr. Williams said. He also wrote a prescription for an antibiotic just in case. He and Eric shook hands again as Eric told him thank you. Eric carried Adriana in his arms to the car and placed her in her car seat. Not even five minutes later, she was asleep. Eric decided this was a good time to call Calleigh and tell her what happened. He reached for his cell phone and dialed her number. Unfortunately, she didn't answer, so he had to leave a message.

"Hey Cal, it's me. Um, we sort of had a little accident this afternoon. Adriana fell out of her swing and I thought she was okay at first until I saw her knee. There was a piece of mulch stuck in her knee and I knew I couldn't get it out so I took her to the ER. She is OKAY. I just want you to know that. She's OKAY! She got 5 stitches, she did a really good job, really scared, but she did great. She's sleeping in her car seat. Whenever you get this please call me back....and... Cal... please don't be mad. I love you, bye."

When Eric pulled into their driveway, he got out of the car, thankful Adriana was still sleeping._ Poor kid, I know she's hurting._ He though as he carried her into the house and lay her on the couch. He brought her favorite blanket from her room and covered her with it. He sat on the floor in front of her and clicked the television on, lowering the volume so she would remain sleeping. She had a very eventful day.

Twenty minutes later, Eric heard the familiar hum of Calleigh's car in their driveway.

"Eric?!" Calleigh said, entering the house. Her face was red and her eyes moist. "Oh my god, is she okay?"

"Yes, she's still asleep. Why didn't you call? Have you been crying?" he asked.

" I just turned my phone on five minutes ago and got your message. I was almost home so I didn't bother calling you back. I was at the shooting range with Natalia this afternoon so I had my phone off. Where is she?" Calleigh asked.

"She's in the den on the couch. Seriously, Cal, have you been crying?" Eric asked again, wrapping his arms around her. "She's okay." he whispered softly into her hair. "Really, she did great. She's one tough little girl. Must take after her mommy."

"I was crying, just for a second though. I wish I could have been there for her, poor thing. I hate to think of our daughter hurt. And Eric, I'm not mad. I could never be mad at you. I trust you. You know that." Calleigh told him.

Eric loosened his hug and followed Calleigh into the den. She kneeled down to Adriana's level. "Adri," she whispered, "Mommy's home."

"Mommy?" Adriana said shakily, opening her eyes. "Mommy I got hurt. I fell down." She lifted her arms for Calleigh to pick her up. "Up, pease." Adriana said.

"Okay, hold on, let me see your knee." Calleigh said, lifting the blanket.

" I got 'titches." Adriana told her.

"Oh Adriana, I am so sorry that happened." She lifted Adriana up. "My precious little girl." she said, rocking her. "The doctor fixed you up didn't he?" she asked.

"Yes...Mommy? I hungry. I have peanut butter and jelly?"

"Is that what you want? Maybe if we ask daddy he'll go make us some. Peanut butter and jelly sounds great." Calleigh answered Adriana.

She sat with Adriana as they waited for Eric to make three peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. One for each of them. They ate together on the couch, which worked well because Adriana was more comfortable there.

Over the next few days, Calleigh and Eric watched over Adriana like a hawk to make sure she didn't fall again, pull at the stitches or get an infection. After the first full day, Adriana could walk without any pain. They still watched her every move. When they both had to work, Eric's mother took very good care of Adriana. Spoiling her like any good grandma does.

Four weeks later, right before her fourth birthday, Adriana got her stitches out. Knowing her birthday was right around the corner, Eric and Calleigh decided it would be a good time to start talking about what Adriana might want to do for her birthday party.

**So... onto the next chapter soon... "Adriana's Birthday" And... will the Delko family grow? You'll just have to wait and see. ~ EmilysMiamiSunrise. **


	8. Adriana's Birthday

March 27th was Adriana's birthday. Her fourth birthday. Stormy weather during the week hid the normally beautiful weather that entered Miami early that morning. The sun shone through the palm trees as a slight breeze blew through open windows and into Calleigh and Eric's home. The weather that day was going to be perfect; 75 degrees and sunny.

At 10:00 the Delko house was fairly quiet. Eric was busy in the kitchen putting the finishing touches on some party treats for Adriana's fourth birthday party, which would start soon. Calleigh and Adriana were sitting on the couch, Adriana curled up in Calleigh's lap watching cartoons. How lucky was Adriana that _both_ her parents managed to get the day off?

By 11:30, their house was no longer quiet . At that point six children between the ages of four and five were running through Calleigh and Eric's house. They would run in and out of the back door, laughing and playing. Natalia offered to come over to help keep the herd of little ones under control. She and Calleigh sat on the couch while Eric and some of his neighborhood friends (whose children were attending the party) stood outside grilling hotdogs.

"Pow, pow, pow... I GOT YOU!" Adriana yelled, chasing her friends.

Calleigh caught her by the arm and pulled her aside. "Uh, uh. No m'am. No children playing guns in my house. Do you understand?"

"Yes, mama." Adriana said breathlessly.

"Thank you. Why don't you and your gang go play outside for a while, please. Natalia and I will get your cake ready, how does that sound?" Calleigh asked her.

"YEAH! YEAH! YEAH! Mommy! Puh-lease, will you?" she answered excitedly. "Then can we eat hotdogs and get presents?"

"Yes, I think daddy's almost done. Go get your friends and tell them it's almost cake time. Then go outside and wait."

Natalia and Calleigh got together everything they needed to take outside for the party. A huge white iced cake with pink trim awaited Adriana and her friends as Eric finished grilling and setting aside the food and condiments for their party-goers. Calleigh also brought out drinks, plates, forks and vanilla ice cream. When the two women walked outside their were greeted by a table of eager children, Adriana bouncing in her chair as she saw the cake her mom carried out.

"Ooooh mommy!" Adriana exclaimed. "It's so pretty!"

"Let's eat these hotdogs first, then we can dig into that cake, okay _princesa_?" Eric told Adriana. "What would you like on your hotdog? You're the birthday girl, so you get to pick first."

"Just ketchup, please, daddy." Adriana answered.

"Wow, she's really got those manners down pat, doesn't she?" Natalia told Calleigh.

"Yeah, we've been working really hard on that. She does really well most of the time unless she's tired." Calleigh answered her.

"Well, you've done a really good job with her, she's an awesome kid. I can't believe she's four already." Natalia said.

"Aww, thanks!" Calleigh said as she and Natalia took a seat. "I was just thinking about that this morning - she's already four. Whew! I am so hungry, I think I could eat three of these things." She said as she picked up the hotdog Eric fixed her, just the way she liked it; chili, mustard and just a few onions.

Natalia laughed as Eric handed her a hotdog, then took a bite after asking, "What, are you eating for two or something?"

_I might be, you just never know_. Calleigh thought as she smiled.

"What was that look, Cal?" Natalia asked quietly. "Are you hiding something from us?"

"Me? No! I'm not." Calleigh said laughing. "Eric would love it if I was though."

"What Cal?" Eric asked, his attention towards Calleigh, "I thought I heard you say my name."

"Nothing at all. Just saying how great your hotdogs are." She answered with a smile.

After everyone was finished, or mostly finished, their hotdogs, everyone sang _Happy Birthday_ to Adriana. The six cake-loving children devoured their cake and ran to play in the backyard so that the adults could clean up and get Adriana's presents ready. Calleigh excused herself to their bedroom to find a few presents she'd hid high up so that Adriana couldn't find them.

_I have been really hungry lately, _she thought. _I'll wait another week..._ she was interrupted but Eric, who was peeking his head in their bedroom door.

"Cal, you alright?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just getting a few things for Adri." she answered.

"Okay, it's just outside you weren't talking about my hotdogs. I know that. What were you and Natalia talking about?"

"Nothing, really."

_Stall tactics, great._ Eric thought. "Calleigh... what's going on?" he asked cornering her, his hands reaching over her shoulders and touching the wall behind her, planting kisses on her neck and trailing them up to behind her ear. She couldn't help but to let out a soft "hmm".

"Eric, I'm okay, I've just been really hungry today. It's probably nothing." Calleigh finally admitted. " I didn't really eat a big breakfast."

"If you're sure that's it. But you know I'll get it out of you sooner or later." Eric said smiling, letting Calleigh wriggle herself from under his arms and back into the closet to reach one more present.

"Is that where you hide my Christmas presents?" he asked slyly.

"Like I'm ever gonna tell you that!" She teased playfully, her sweet Southern accent making it's presence known. She kissed him on that cheek and hurried back out, not wanting to leave the guests alone any longer.

"Mommy! Come on!" Adriana said, as Calleigh opened the back door, Eric following her close by.

"Okay, let's open these presents." Calleigh said. "Adri, you sit here and your friends can sit near you in a circle so that everyone can see."

"Daddy, can you sit beside me?" Adriana asked.

"Of course I can. Calleigh, will you hand me a garbage bag so I can put the wrapping paper in it when she's done opening her presents?" Eric said, sitting down next to Adriana, getting on her level as well as the other little ones who naturally moved closer to him.

"There's something about him," Calleigh whispered to Natalia, "that kids just love. I don't know what it is. Every time we have Adriana's friends over, they want Eric to play house or throw the ball with them or whatever. It's actually really cute. He's so good with kids."

"I know, I've noticed that too." Natalia said. "Well, Eric is just a big kid himself."

"I'm gonna have to agree with you on that one." Calleigh said. Then the two began to laugh.

Adriana had a wonderful time opening, or rather in the case of a four year old, ripping the paper off of the boxes and finding out what her friends got her for her birthday. A doll, puzzle, pocketbook, pair of plastic high heel shoes, and 2 stuffed animals later, Adriana and her friends were back out in the backyard playing once again. One of her new stuffed animals - a tiger, who she quickly named Carlie - became the new plaything. They put the stuffed animal in one of the swings and pushed it around. Eric laughed when he heard her tell her friends to watch out for the mulch, that it could cut them. He knew she still thought about her accident when she fell off the swing. He also knew that a week after it happened she wanted to get back on the swing. Eric and Calleigh were very surprised that she wasn't afraid of it, but wouldn't let her on it until her stitches were out.

As the last of the party guests left, and Natalia went back to the lab, Eric and Calleigh cleaned up the last of the mess from the party. Adriana sat quietly "reading" a book. She had that book read to her so many times she had memorized most of the words.

"Come here, my sweet little four year old." Calleigh said, scooping Adriana up. "Did you have a good day?"

"Yes, it was fun!" Adriana said, her eyes sparkling. "Can I have another birthday tomorrow?"

"No, it doesn't work like that, sweetie." Calleigh said, laughing, before sitting on the couch with Adriana still on her lap. She held her close, curling Adriana's curls around her finger. She loved that Adriana had a good mix of her and Eric's hair. Just enough curl to not be terribly hard to manage in the morning.

"Adri, I remember when you were born." She started.

"You do?" Adriana questioned looking up into Calleigh's eyes. "Was I little?"

"Oh yes, you were very little, and daddy and I were afraid we would hurt you because you were so little, but we got the hang of it pretty fast." Calleigh answered. "We both held you and talked you all night long when you were born and you looked at us with your tiny eyes and we saw how perfect you were." She held Adriana and rocked her.

"Mommy, am I always going to be your baby?"

"Yes, you are always going to be my baby, and daddy's baby. Forever." Calleigh said, kissing her forehead. Adriana's eyes were almost closed at this point. The party wore her out and now she was happily in Calleigh's arms. Calleigh rocked her a little more before she lay down on the couch, Adriana curled up on her stomach. It wasn't long before Calleigh was asleep herself.

"Cal? Adri? Where are you..." Eric started, then saw them sleeping on the couch, "Oops!" he whispered. He found a blanket and covered them up, smiling. He grabbed the remote and turned the television on, hoping to find some football to watch while his favorite angels napped. When Calleigh woke up, she placed Adriana back on the couch while she and Eric fixed dinner.

"Okay, here's the deal," Calleigh began. "Remember how you said that having another little one running around might be fun?"

"Yes..." Eric said, a smile forming on his face, praying for what he thought Calleigh might say next.

"Well, I'm not totally positive, but something's telling me we have a bun in the oven." she answered.

"You really think so?" he asked.

"It wasn't just today I felt hungry. It's been like that for three days. When I first thought I was pregnant with Adriana, I felt just like I do now. Sometimes my body is not really on track, just depending on how stressful work is, so I don't know if I'm over thinking or if I'm pregnant, but something is definitely going on. Don't get too excited yet, let's wait a week and see what happens, okay?"

"Okay!" Eric said, his face already lightening up with the possibility of a baby in the near future. He kissed Calleigh, and held his lips to hers until he started chuckling.

"Cal, really... I hope you are pregnant." He said, rubbing his hands on her stomach.

"Why?" she asked.

"Because your so gorgeous when you are pregnant, you hair gets all shiny and...just...wow... I mean... your so beautiful now, don't get me wrong, I just love you when you have that pregnant glow."

"Ha! You mean, the little time between the morning sickness and the too big to walk and function time?" Calleigh said.

"No, you look good the _whole_ time, trust me." he answered.

"Smart man, Eric. Smart man. You're such a charmer, you know that?" Calleigh said, giggling.

"I aim to please...you, that is." Eric said, kissing her a final time before returning to his spaghetti sauce that was beginning to boil.

______________________________________________________________________________

**So I am ending it there. As soon as I have time, I'll add a chapter. Possibly titled "One Week Later." You'll just have to wait and see. ~ EmilysMiamiSunrise.**


	9. One Week Later

One Week Later

Eric shifted during the early morning of April 2nd, moving his leg towards Calleigh's side of the bed. When he didn't feel her right beside him, he opened his eyes to check the time. _5:33. _He moved the covers off of himself and looked toward their bathroom door. Seeing the light wasn't on, he got up, found his t-shirt he had pulled off the night before, put it on and headed downstairs. He heard water running in the kitchen.

"You know we don't have to get up for 45 more minutes, right?" he asked Calleigh, spying her leaned against the counter near the sink having just gotten herself a glass of water. "Whoa...are you okay?" He suddenly became concerned when he saw her face, white as a sheet and her eyes slightly bloodshot.

Calleigh put down her glass. "Yeah, I am now. I....um...just threw up." She told him. "I think I am gonna be okay. I'll stop by the drug store on the way home today. I'm pretty sure I'm pregnant. There's really no other explanation."

"Aww... Calleigh!" Eric said softly, "You really think so? Baby, I'm so happy. I really hope you are!" He gave her a big hug, pressing his body close to hers and kissing her forehead. They didn't notice Adriana as she made her way into the kitchen. She was always an early riser, had been since she was teeny tiny.

"Daddy, what are you doing to mommy?" Adriana asked.

Eric nearly choked on his saliva laughing and backed away from Calleigh. "Adri! Good morning. I was giving mommy a kiss. How about I give you a kiss too?" He kissed his little girl and asked her what she would like for breakfast.

"Pancakes, please." She answered.

"Sorry, sweetie, we don't have time to make pancakes, but I can make you some cinnamon toast. How does that sound?" Calleigh asked her.

"Yeah! Yum!" Adriana told Calleigh as she climbed onto a chair and sat at the table. Eric brought her a little cup of milk which she happily began to drink.

"Mommy, can you and daddy stay home today?" she asked.

"No, we can't. I'm sorry, but we both have to work today. Remember, we talked about this last night. You are going to stay with Kristin and her mommy and daddy today until we get home from work. It might be after dinner when we get home, but I promise we will spend some time with you, okay?" Calleigh told her as she fixed Adriana's toast.

Kristin was a little girl who lived next door and was Adriana's best friend. Calleigh and Eric had become good friends with her parents and very often Adriana would spend the day over there while Calleigh and Eric were at work. When Kristin's parents needed to run errands, Kristin would sometimes stay with the Delkos. It worked out great since Kristin and Adriana played nicely together.

Eric, Calleigh and Adriana ate their breakfast and got ready for the day. When they were through, they walked Adriana to their neighbor's house and left for work. As they drove Calleigh couldn't help but notice the ever-growing smile on Eric's face.

"What?" Calleigh questioned playfully.

"Me? Nothing. I just can't wait to find out if you are pregnant or not." Eric answered.

"Eric, I'm pretty sure it's a safe bet. I.... Eric, pull into that parking lot now!" She said quickly.

Now it was his turn to ask, "What? Why?"as he pulled into the fast-food parking lot. Calleigh jumped out, flinging the restaurant door open and running to the bathroom. A short time later she came out carrying a water.

"You okay?" Eric asked when she sat back down in the car.

"Yeah, I don't remember getting this sick with Adriana. I hope it won't be like this a lot." Calleigh said, taking a swig of her water. "Maybe we should go ahead and get a test now, before work."

"Okay, we've got time." Eric said as he pulled out of one parking lot, only to pull into another one 5 minutes later. "Want me to go in with you?" he asked.

"Nah, I'm good. I can do it." Calleigh told him, smiling.

_____

When they arrived at the lab, Calleigh and Eric parted ways -the pregnancy test hidden away in Calleigh's pocketbook. She darted into the locker room, closed the bathroom door and took the test. Three minutes and a shaky hand later, 2 pink lines confirmed that Calleigh and Eric were in fact, going to be parents again.

"Oh...my...God..." Calleigh said, laughing. "Oh... Eric's gonna flip. Ha ha!"

Calleigh finished up in the bathroom and grabbed her phone to quickly text message Eric.

"Positive :)"

It didn't take long for a "YEAH! I love you :)" to return to her phone.

Calleigh looked down at her stomach and smiled. "Hello, little one. I'm so excited about you." She said rubbing her stomach as if she were already 9 months pregnant and could feel the baby kicking. Obviously it would be a while before that, but Calleigh felt it was important that this little one know he or she was very much loved and very much wanted in her and Eric's life.

Busily, Eric and Calleigh went on with their day, meeting up in the break room a little after 1:00 in the afternoon. Eric's eyes lit up at the sign of his wife coming into the room, sitting beside him and placing a quick kiss on his cheek.

"Hi, new daddy. How's your day goin'?" Calleigh asked him.

"Great!" Eric said. "What about you? You feeling okay...any more... you know what?"

"No, no more thankfully. You think we should go ahead and tell Horatio like we did last time?" Calleigh asked, grabbing an apple.

"Yeah, that might be a good idea." Eric told her.

After the two finished eating, they walked side by side to Horatio's office to find him deep in case files, immersed in trying to solve the most ghastly murders and events that sometimes plagued their city. Eric knocked on the open door to announce their arrival.

"Eric, Calleigh, what can I help you with this afternoon?" Horatio asked, his blue eyes questioning them. He hadn't remembered the last time _both_ Eric and Calleigh had ever come to him at the same time to ask him anything.

"H, I...uh..." Eric started. "Calleigh and I wanted to let you know that we are expecting a new little one. She took a home pregnancy test this morning and it was positive."

Horatio looked at Calleigh then back at Eric. "Well, congratulations, you two." He said, standing up shaking Eric's hand.

"I'm going to make an appointment with my doctor to make it official, but we figured we really needed to let you know first so that we could take the necessary precautions like we did when I was pregnant with Adriana." Calleigh told him.

_____

So it was arranged, like the first time Calleigh was pregnant that she would not have to work around any dangerous chemicals, from now until the baby was born. She would not interrogate suspects or work in her firearms lab after she began to show. The only thing that upset her was giving up her firearms lab. It hurt Calleigh deeply, but she knew it was for the best and it was only for a few months. She still could supervise, but it wasn't quite the same.

That same afternoon, Calleigh arranged for a doctor's appointment for the very next morning. When the morning arrived, bright and sunny, Calleigh felt great. Confident, even. It wasn't like before, when she was worried about what Eric might say or the changes that her body would undertake. This time it felt right. She was pregnant with Eric's baby. Again. It was very planned this time and Calleigh was ready to take on the challenge of being a new mom again.

She sat in her doctor's office practically beaming. It didn't matter that she had to wait 20 minutes with old magazines and a not so comfortable chair. Soon it was her turn. She was meeting with a new doctor, a younger lady who had taken over for Calleigh's old doctor who had retired the year before. Her new doctor was Doctor Miller. She seemed nice, with friendly eyes and a sweet smile.

"Hi, Mrs. Delko, I'm Claire Miller, it's nice to meet you." Dr. Miller said, sticking out her hand.

"Please, call me Calleigh." Calleigh said smiling, returning the hand shake. "It's nice to meet you too."

"So, Calleigh, I'm reading you've taken a home pregnancy test and it came back positive. So we are confirming the good news then, today?" Dr. Miller asked.

"Yes." Calleigh answered, sitting on the table.

"Is this your first pregnancy?" Dr. Miller asked again, checking Calleigh's vitals.

"No, this is our second. We have a four year old little girl named Adriana." she answered.

"Aww, she'll be so excited to have a new baby brother or sister. She'll be old enough to help out a little bit too." Dr. Miller said.

"Yeah, we know she'll be thrilled. We may wait and tell her when she can actually see my belly. It may help her understand it better when she can see it." Calleigh told her.

"That's a good idea. So, are you making a whole day of this 'finding out about the baby thing' or are you headed back to work?" Dr. Miller asked.

"Oh I wish, I'm a crime scene investigator with Miami-Dade PD. A day off is hard to come by most of the time."

"Oh! Wow! That's exciting. What does your husband do?" Dr. Miller asked.

"He's actually a CSI too, that's how we met." Calleigh answered.

Dr. Miller then told Calleigh what she needed to do to collect a sample to confirm the pregnancy. After Calleigh finished in the bathroom and came back to the room, Dr. Miller waited with Calleigh for a few minutes and the two chatted. A nurse came in the room and handed her a sheet of paper.

Smiling, Dr. Miller announced, "Well Calleigh, looks like it's a go...you're pregnant! Congratulations!"

Dr. Miller asked Calleigh a few more questions to try and determine exactly when the baby was conceived to give a possible due date. It was estimated that the baby was conceived around March 7th and more than likely, Calleigh and Eric would be welcoming a new Delko into the world around late November of that year.

"I think I'd like to go ahead and see the heartbeat. Did you have an internal ultrasound with your first one?" Dr. Miller asked Calleigh. She set up the machine and had Calleigh lay back on the table.

"Yes, I did. I wanted pictures very early on, I wanted to see the little miracle growing inside me every step of the way." Calleigh told her.

"Well, let's go for it, then" Dr. Miller told her as she prepped Calleigh. She started the ultrasound and then stopped, turning to Calleigh and smiling.

"Calleigh, would you like to know how many babies you're carrying?" Dr. Miller asked.

"Whaaaat?" Calleigh said, knowing her face was reddening. "How...how many?"

"It looks like you are carrying twins. Since I can see them both early on, I believe they are fraternal twins." Dr, Miller said.

"No way! Eric is going to freak out. Oh my gosh, are you... can I see?" Calleigh said.

"Sure!" Dr. Miller turned the ultrasound monitor towards Calleigh letting her see the two tiny miracles that were growing inside of her.

It became too much for Calleigh to bear at that moment. She wanted to be pregnant, she wanted to be a mom again, but she and Eric never even thought about the possibility of twins. Tears formed and fell to the side of her face which she quickly wiped away.

"Are you okay? Do you need a minute?" Dr. Miller asked as she finished up with Calleigh and punched a few buttons on the ultrasound computer printing the first picture of the Delko twins.

"Whew...no, I'm okay." Calleigh answered truthfully as Dr. Miller handed her the picture.

"Wow...twins!." she whispered.

_____

Calleigh walked out of the doctor's office still holding the picture of the babies in her hand. She didn't want to let go, the picture still on her lap as she started the car. She noticed a missed call.

"Oh, Eric..." she said. "Okay, hope you're not busy." She dialed his number. He picked up on the second ring. _Must be a sign,_ she thought. _Two rings for two babies._

"Delko." Eric said, listening for a voice.

"Eric. Hey, it's me, Cal."

"Hey! How'd the appointment go?" he asked.

"Good. Great in fact! I'm definitely pregnant. Due late November." She answered.

"Well that's good. I mean, it's awesome. Oh Calleigh I can't wait!" Eric said excitedly.

"Eric...there's more."

"More... what do you mean, _more_?"

"My new doctor, Doctor Miller, did an ultrasound and found out we're having twins. Twins, Eric, two babies. Oh my God, it just hit me again. We're having twins." Calleigh told him, her voice shaking.

"Are you serious? Oh whoa... Cal, that is so cool!" Eric said. Calleigh could tell he was excited.

"Yeah, it's cool, but I'm super scared." Calleigh told him.

"Cal, it's gonna be okay. I promise, I'm here for you. Now and forever, we're gonna make this work. Don't be scared, everything's gonna work out. How for are you from PD?" Eric asked her.

"About 10 minutes." Calleigh answered.

"Okay, meet me outside when you get here, we'll go take a walk and talk, alright? I love you so much Calleigh." Eric said.

"Sounds good." Calleigh said, feeling a wave of relief flooding through her body. "Meet you in ten. I love you too, bye."

"Bye." Eric said, as he hung up the phone smiling. He practically ran to the front of the building, waiting for Calleigh to arrive so he could kiss her senseless.


	10. Telling a 4 year old

Early May, Calleigh was twelve weeks pregnant. She noticed Adriana looking at her every so often very quizzically, as if to say _"Mommy your tummy looks different."_ Adriana never said a thing, but Calleigh knew she had to be wondering.

Adriana was coloring quietly one afternoon when Calleigh called to her. "Adri, come here. Mommy needs to talk to you." Adriana quickly put her crayon down and skipped over to Calleigh who was sitting on the couch.

"Adriana, did you notice mommy's tummy looks like it is getting bigger?" Calleigh asked her.

"Yes, momma." Adriana said, rubbing Calleigh's stomach with her hand. "Did you eat too much?"

Calleigh couldn't help but to chuckle. "No, sweetie. Mommy didn't eat too much. Listen, I want you to understand something. In a few months, you are going to be a big sister, do you know what that means?"

"A big sister? Like how Amanda at my school is a big sister?" Adriana asked her.

"Yes, just like that." Calleigh remembered Adriana's friend Amanda from preschool. Amanda's mother had a baby 2 months ago and brought the baby with her when she dropped her off at school. She figured Amanda had explained to Adriana that she was a big sister.

"Adri, mommy's tummy is getting bigger because I am pregnant. When you are pregnant, that means you have a baby inside of you that is growing. But listen, this is the cool part. Sometimes mommies have one baby in their tummy growing, but I have two babies inside of me growing right now." Calleigh explained, while she rubbed her stomach.

"Oooooh, mommy! Can I see them?" Adriana asked.

"In a few months you can. They are not ready to come out. When it is past summer time and past Halloween, it will almost be time. Mommy's tummy has to get really big before they can come out. If you want to, you can talk to them and rub my tummy and say hello." Calleigh told her.

"Oh, hello babies." Adriana said softly, her lips touching the fabric of Calleigh's shirt. "Are they boys or girls?"

"Mommy's doctor can't tell yet. The babies have to be a little bit bigger so we can see." Calleigh answered. "Why don't we take a walk outside and you can ask me all the questions you want, okay?"

"Okay!" Adriana said, jumping up and down excitedly.

"Go find your shoes and I'll help you get them on." Calleigh said, sitting up.

Adriana and Calleigh walked and talked going up the sidewalk to a park where Calleigh could sit and watch Adriana play. Not even five minutes later, Calleigh felt two warm arms wrap around her shoulders. She jumped at the touch until she realized it was Eric.

"Eric! You scared me." She said.

"Sorry, I couldn't resist." he said, kissing her. "How was your day?"

"Pretty good. Adriana knows she's going to be a big sister now." Calleigh told Eric.

"Oh really? How'd she take it." Eric asked.

"A whole lot of questions, she seems excited. She talked about it the whole way up here."

Adriana ran over and hugged Eric. "Daddy! Daddy!" she cried happily. "Daddy, did you know mommy has babies in her tummy?"

"Yes, I did." Eric told her. "Are you excited about being a big sister?"

"Yes!" Adriana said.

"Good! I am glad you are excited! Do you want me to push you on the swings for a minute before we go home?"

"Okay!" Adriana said, running towards the swings.

Calleigh watched as Eric pushed Adriana in a swing. She loved watching the two of them together. She loved the way Eric's eyes softened as he got in touch with his parenting side, much different than the hard-core cop that she saw most days. She loved how, even though she was a girl, Adriana's laughter sounded very similar to Eric's and how her mouth crinkled up just like his. She hoped the twins would take after him too. Smiling, she rubbed her belly and sighed, taking it all in. She couldn't wait to be a mom again.


	11. How Time Flies

As the Miami weather grew hotter and hotter by the day, it was quite obvious summer was approaching. The official start of summer came and went followed by Calleigh's much awaited appointment with Dr. Miller to find out if she and Eric were having 2 boys, 2 girls or one of each.

Eric asked Horatio for a few hours off to go with Calleigh. Horatio gladly let him take as many hours as he needed that day.

"Ready?" Eric asked, helping Calleigh to her feet as her name was called not long after they arrived at the doctor's office.

"As ready as I'll ever be." Calleigh answered smiling.

Eric gestured sweetly for Calleigh and the nurse to go through the door and down the hall before himself. Calleigh was weighed, and the two were led into a room. The nurse took a few other standard tests and asked a few questions before opening the door to leave.

"Dr. Miller will be in shortly." the nurse said.

"Thank you." Calleigh told her.

Not long after, Dr. Miller entered the room. She talked for a while before having Calleigh lay down on the bed and lift her loosely flowing pink shirt. It was so light that Calleigh had chosen it as her favorite shirt because it kept her cool.

Dr. Miller prepped Calleigh for the ultrasound. The cold gel startled her for a second. Dr. Miller slid the probe on Calleigh's belly, finding the first baby.

"Hmm," she said, "Looks like this one is a....little boy!"

"Oh, Eric! A little boy!" Calleigh said, looking at Eric and holding his hand.

Dr. Miller soon found the other twin and moved the probe around for a second. "Sneaky little one! Come here so your mommy and daddy can find out what you are...come here. Ah ha! Meet your little girl!"

"A girl! Oh wow!" Eric said. "A girl and a boy. How perfect! Oh Cal!" He bent down and kissed her on her lips, Calleigh lifted her head up slightly to return the kiss.

After finding out they were having a boy and a girl, Calleigh and Eric shared the news with their family, friends and co-workers. Adriana was thrilled that she would have a little brother _and_ a little sister.

____

Mid-July, Calleigh started spending less and less time in the crime lab and more time at home. It was planned that every month, Calleigh would decrease her hours; one or two each month, depending on how she felt. In August, Calleigh spent 6 hours at work. This meant Adriana could stay at home longer instead of having to stay with her friend who lived next door, or Eric's mother.

Calleigh and Adriana spent time online looking at different baby things. Calleigh let Adriana choose a few things for her new siblings because she wanted her to feel like part of the process. There were many changes coming soon, so Calleigh and Eric wanted Adriana to know that she was loved and that they would still have time for her even with two tiny babies in the house.

Part of their time together was spent being lazy on the couch. Adriana loved putting her hands on Calleigh's stomach and feeling the twins move around. As Calleigh's stomach grew, it was much easier for her to feel them. Calleigh also helped Adriana with her ABC's, showed her how to write her name, and how to count to one hundred. By the end of August, Adriana could successfully count to 70 with no problem. Adriana also knew her address and telephone number which made both of her parents very happy.

September came and went. Adriana started pre-school, Calleigh decreased her hours a little more, finding out that carrying twins in her seventh month was a lot more difficult than being pregnant with just Adriana. She spent more time helping Natalia with DNA and Eric with fingerprints. Whenever she and Eric would work together, they'd whisper "sweet nothings" to each other and smile. Eric would wink at Calleigh and she'd giggle, then remember herself and give him a sharp _"Eric! We're at work."_ That would make them both laugh for a second, then they would get back to work.

October was rather uneventful. Calleigh and Eric finalized the twins' nursery, painting the room a light green. Two little car seats sitting on the floor reminded them that soon, they would be parents again. Adriana decided to be a fairy for Halloween. Eric took her trick-or-treating while Calleigh stayed home. Natalia came over to chat and answer the door each time the doorbell rang so Calleigh wouldn't have to get up.

At this point, Calleigh was only at work for 2 hours. Her feet were huge, she felt enormous and also felt like she was always hungry. It was just easier to stay at home. She and Eric were anticipating the arrival of their new little ones in less than one month. Their arrival would be a little different than Calleigh or Eric had imagined it would be.


	12. Welcome Little Delkos

**Well you guys, I decided to go ahead and put this chapter up for everyone before I head to Miami. A special thanks to one of my best friends in the world – Petra for helping me with this chapter. **

It was mid-November and Calleigh had finished her two hour shift and was headed upstairs to give Horatio a case file, when Frank brought in with an intoxicated suspect whose drunkenness made him extremely belligerent. He marched the alleged perp in front of him, with the man's hand's firmly handcuffed behind him. Yelling, screaming, twisting and turning he freed himself from Frank's iron grip and sped in Calleigh's direction.

"Oh my God!" Calleigh screamed, dropping her file and moving as fast as she could to the wall, which ended up being a bathroom door. It took three burly officers and Frank to recapture their suspect before he made it back to the outside world. Frank hoped Calleigh was okay, but knew from the look on her face that she wasn't.

Calleigh pushed the door open and leaned against the wall, her heart thumping and pounding, feeling as though it wanted to burst from her chest. "Okay.... okay.... okay..." she said between breaths, "I'm okay, I'm okay....oh crap, I know what that is..."

A sharp pain pierced through her back and down her legs. "Oh, no; please God not here, not now. Please, no." She screamed as the pain eased a bit. She flipped open her phone and dialed Eric's number.

"Delko" the voice on the other line said tersely.

"Errric!" Calleigh mewled in her misery. "Eric, I need you. Please come quick!"

"Where are you?" his voice boomed in his temporary panic.

"I'm...." Eric could hear Calleigh breathing heavily on the other end of the phone. "I'm in the women's bathroom upstairs... near Horatio's office. I got scared and it just happened so quickly and I'm pretty sure that the babies are coming. GOD ERIC HURRY!"

"I'm coming, just hold on for me okay, it's gonna be okay." He said. "Don't hang up, I'm gonna talk to you 'til I get there."

"Okay"

He could still hear her crying and trying to breathe steadily, but she wasn't able to hold it together. He raced out of the evidence locker, locked the door, and bolted up the stairs.

"Eric! Pleeease!" she yelled.

"Calleigh, you've got to breathe…I'm here…I'm coming in. Hang up." Eric said.

"Cal, honey," Eric soothed as he entered the bathroom and put his hands on her upper arms. "Come on, we've got to get you to the car." He flipped open his phone and called Horatio, informing him of where they were and that they were leaving right then to go to the hospital.

"Eric, NO I can't move!" Calleigh said hysterically.

"Yes you can, look at me. You can! Now come on before this gets worse." Eric said as he slid his arm under hers and gingerly walked her to the door. He threw Horatio his car keys and asked him to bring his car to the front of the building.

"I don't see how this could get much worse." Calleigh answered as Eric helped her to the car. Luckily, the contraction stopped, which gave them enough time to reach the car and get Calleigh seated in the passenger seat. Five minutes later, another contraction hit, sending Calleigh into hysterics again.

"Ohhh, oooow. Aaah, moooove cars, move. Eric, just go!" she said.

"Cal, I can't just run over other cars," Eric laughed. "We're going…we're moving again. It's okay, Cal, just breathe! Look, listen, watch me breathe, and do what I do okay?"

Eric helped her breathe for the fifteen minutes it took to reach the hospital. Dr. Miller, their family OB/GYN, met them at the ER entrance, Calleigh's file in hand.

"Calleigh, Eric, hello!," Dr. Miller smiled as she greeted them. "I see there are two little ones ready to be welcomed to the world. How far apart are your contractions?"

"About five minutes apart, doctor." Eric said.

"Okay, let's get you fixed up here then. The second time around usually goes quicker that the first, and you had your first one pretty quickly, so I'm expecting the twins to do the same."

An intern admitted Calleigh while her doctor watched closely behind. Then escorted her and Eric to a room similar to the one they had when Adriana was born. Remembering how badly it hurt now and knowing it would get worse very quickly, Calleigh opted to receive the epidural as soon as she could so she wouldn't have to go through as much pain as she had previously. When she was dilated enough to have the epidural, she opted for it. She was a whole other woman once the meds hit her system.

"Eric, will you please hand me my water?" she asked politely. "I'm really thirsty."

"Sure. Feeling better, I take it." he grinned, as he handed her the cup.

"Gosh, I wish I'd gotten the epidural a lot sooner last time. It feels so good to be able to relax for a little bit." Calleigh said. "I mean, I feel a little pain, but nothing like with Adriana. Speaking of which, she's with your mom, right?"

"Yes, worried mama," he smiled. "She'll bring her up after the babies are born." Eric answered.

An hour later, a nurse came in to check on Calleigh. While the nurse checked Calleigh she felt the whoosh of water as her water broke.

"Mrs. Delko, you are 7 centimeters dilated, it won't be too much longer now. Your water just broke as I checked you. I'll page Dr. Miller," the nurse said.

"Thank you" Calleigh answered.

Eric leaned in and kissed Calleigh on the lips. "I can't wait! They are coming soon!" he said. Eric settled back into his chair and continued flipping through his magazine as Calleigh half watched and half slept through two television shows. Every few minutes she would watch as the monitor showed her having a contraction. The next time her door opened to admit Dr. Miller.

"Anna," Dr. Miller asked the nurse, "would you please find Calleigh another pillow? She's in for a double inning this time, and I want her to be comfortable throughout the delivery process."

"Okey, dokey, doc," Anna grinned, "your wish is my command."

"Now, Calleigh," Dr. Miller smiled, "are you ready to work?"

"Yes, we are so ready!" Calleigh said, looking at Eric and reaching for his hand.

"Alrighty, let's check you and see if it's time yet." Dr. Miller said as she lifted the bed sheet to see if Calleigh was properly dilated.

"Ooh I believe you are ready. You're a good ten centimeters, so I'll start getting everything set up and lessen your epidural so you can feel when to push."

"You really have to lessen it?" Calleigh asked, half teasing.

"I'm afraid so, dear. You're too relaxed to do the pushing you must to safely deliver your children tonight." Dr. Miller paged the nurses and they quickly prepared the room, but they weren't fast enough. As they prepared room, Calleigh felt the urge to push. Her nurse on one side and Eric on the other, she was able to push as her doctor counted at the foot of the bed.

"Okay, I can do this!" Calleigh said, grasping Eric's hand as hard as she could.

"Come on Calleigh, push, baby push!" Eric said.

"That's right, Calleigh, there ya go. Good job!" Dr. Miller said.

Two pushes later, Doctor Miller announced that she could see the head of the first twin. Calleigh screamed, but remained steady and held onto Eric's hand, totally focused.

"There we go, good girl, Calleigh. Come on. Push!" Dr. Miller said again as the first twin came out. "I'm going to suction the mouth and nose and we should have a healthy cry." She said as he helped the first baby into the world.

"IT'S A GIRL!" Dr. Miller announced.

"Awww, Eric, she looks just like Adriana did!" Calleigh cooed, as she saw her little girl before the intern and other nurses cleaned her up. "Oh, she's so cute!"

"Calleigh, you're going to have more contractions and then your little boy should be here soon." Her doctor said.

Sure enough two contractions and two pushes later, a healthy baby boy screamed his way into the world, as with his older sibling, the nurses cleaned him up and brought to Calleigh. Eric sat beside her as he held his new baby girl.

"So we've decided on names for these two, right?" he asked Calleigh. "We are going with Alyssa Marie for this little angel right here and Patrick Francis for that cute little man you've got in your arms."

"Sounds good to me." she answered as Patrick began to cry.

"Hey, hey, it's okay," Calleigh, whispered, "You're all right, my Patrick. Mommy and daddy are here. It's okay, sweetie. You're so precious. You've got a big sister whose waiting to meet you! Yes, sir." She rocked Patrick and hummed to him as he drifted back to sleep.

"Gosh, Cal, we make pretty babies." Eric said. "Yes, we do." He said to Alyssa as he held her tightly and gazed at her tiny face. "You look just like your big sister." He nuzzled his nose on hers and kissed her cheek. Each twin was checked again to make sure they were okay and were given back to Eric and Calleigh.


	13. Meeting the Twins

Eric walked around the room with Alyssa in his arms before switching and taking Patrick. "Hey little man, daddy's got you now." he started, "Hey, hey buddy! I see your eyes. I'm your daddy." Patrick let out a tiny noise as if he understood and accepted that Eric was his daddy. His big blue eyes gazed up at his father and he seemed to chuckle for the first time, hooking his father immediately.

Calleigh and Eric spent a good five hours looking at their twins and admiring them, watching their every move and laughing when the slightest noise made one or both newborns startle and flail their arms out to the side. They marveled at how they were so similar to each other, but also like Adriana.

Eric saw that Calleigh was really trying to stay awake and offered to put both twins in the tiny beds the hospital provided for them so she could sleep. He carefully placed Patrick, then Alyssa into their bed together and sat in the chair next to Calleigh. He noticed her eyes were already closed. He gingerly stroked her face and then ran his fingers through her hair, getting a few tangles out without even the tiniest movement from Calleigh.

"I love you." He whispered in her ear. His face inches away from hers.

Eric swore he hadn't stared at Calleigh for as long as he had, but the next thing he knew, an hour had passed. He lifted up from the position he was in, stretched and looked over at his tiny twins. Alyssa was awake and seemed to be happily looking around the room. Eric knew she couldn't see far away yet but it made him smile, thinking she was just relaxing and taking it all in on her first day being born.

"Hey, little girl." He said, lifting her up and bringing her close to his chest. He sat down on the couch and lay back, allowing Alyssa to lay in the crook of his arm. "Did you have a good nap?" He asked her. He flipped on the television and put the volume low. He watched the news until Calleigh woke up.

Calleigh smiled at Eric and turned to her newborn son who was asleep in his little bed. She gingerly moved herself to a sitting position and picked him up.

"Patrick," she whispered. "Hey there, cutie, whatcha doin'?" She asked him. She admired his tiny hand as it poked through the top of the blanket he was wrapped in. Another staring contest was on; as Eric had stared at Calleigh earlier, Calleigh stared at Patrick, marveling at him and how he looked like a tiny version of Eric, but with lighter hair.

Eric watched in awe at his family. He felt like his heart had grown some too that day. He didn't think he could be any happier than he was just then. All he needed was for Adriana to be there and it would be complete. He dialed his mother's number and asked if she could bring Adriana to the hospital to meet her new brother and sister. He and Calleigh had some time to relax and now he really wanted Adriana to be there. Eric's mother said they would be there soon.

30 minutes later, Adriana and Eric's mother came into the room. Adriana was very quiet and reserved for a while. She wouldn't even speak to Calleigh and hid behind her grandmother's legs. She finally climbed onto the bed with her after Calleigh told her for the tenth time that _"Mommy was okay and that she really, really wanted Adriana to sit with her_."

"Mommy," whispered Adriana. "You are okay?"

"Yes sweetie, mommy is more than okay. Mommy is very, very happy that you are here to see your new brother and sister." Calleigh told her, lifting up Patrick from his bed. "This is your brother, Patrick. See how little he is. Daddy is holding your sister Alyssa."

"Can I touch him?" Adriana asked.

"Of course you can." Calleigh said softly. "Here Adri, touch his hand."

"Oooh," Adriana said, still quiet. "His skin is soft."

"Do you want to give him a kiss?" Calleigh asked.

Adriana smiled and bent over to kiss Patrick. She lifted her head up and asked Calleigh. "Are they coming home today?"

"No, sweetie, mommy, Patrick and Alyssa are going to stay in the hospital for another night or two at least. Daddy is staying tonight with me, and you'll be with grandma until daddy gets home, okay?"

This seemed to please Adriana. She must have been having a great time at her grandma's house to not even whine about having to be away from her parents for a little while longer. She kept her gaze on Patrick for a little bit before sliding off of the bed to sit next to Eric. Sucking her right thumb, she gently touched Alyssa's head and stroked her tiny newborn sister's hair.

"Hey Adri!" Eric said. "Meet Alyssa!"

"Hey, Lyssa." Adriana said quietly. "Daddy can I give her a kiss too?"

"You sure can." Eric answered, lowering Alyssa for Adriana. "You looked just like this when you were born, see her tiny curls?"

"She's pretty, daddy." Adriana said.

"Just like you, _princesa_." Eric told her, kissing her hair. "I love you, my big girl."

"Love you too, daddy." Adriana told him, making his heart melt.

So there they were, the complete Delko family; Eric, Calleigh, Adriana, Patrick and Alyssa. Eric's mother took their first family photo, trying to hold back tears as she was very proud of her son.


	14. Two Weeks Later

Two weeks later, when things were finally calming down, and family and friends had seen the new babies, the Delko's were starting to get into a routine. Eric had the first three weeks after the twins' births off and Calleigh, of course, had much longer. So the two of them were home all the time. Mornings were spent feeding, changing and putting the twins back to bed, feeding Adriana breakfast, and Eric driving her to preschool. When he returned, either one or both babies were awake and eating. He would usually talk to Calleigh for a while and clean up around the house.

After lunch time, Eric would pick Adriana back up from preschool and bring her home. Calleigh would spend some time with Adriana. Eric would handle Patrick and Alyssa. Each night he made dinner, bathed Adriana and put her to bed, allowing Calleigh ample time to regain her strength after just giving birth. After they had gone to bed for the evening, he and Calleigh would take turns getting up to soothe or feed Patrick or Alyssa. Though exhausting, most days went by with little hassle. There were times, however that both Eric and Calleigh felt like Adriana might have needed more attention and they really tried to make sure she got to help or hold Patrick and Alyssa or play a game with mommy and daddy.

One afternoon, Calleigh was napping. Eric had just gotten Alyssa used to the bouncy seat that morning. She had never liked it for more than a few minutes but for some reason, slept soundly in it that afternoon. Adriana ran past the bouncy seat and accidentally hit it with her foot, shaking it a little bit. It didn't even wake Alyssa up, but Eric still felt like she needed to know to be careful.

"Adri, please be careful." He whispered. "I just got Alyssa to sleep."

"Sorry!" she whispered back.

Eric could almost pick up a hint of frustration in her voice as she left the room.

Five minutes later Adriana called out. "Daddy! Can you get my green marker from my desk."

"Princesa, I really can't right now. I am feeding Patrick his bottle." Eric answered. "And please, don't yell. Your sister is sleeping."

"Can I help?" Adriana asked, walking in the room.

"Sure, you can. Come here." Eric told her as he stood up and Adriana climbed onto the couch. Eric lay Patrick in her arms and gave her the bottle. Patrick drank happily as Adriana fed him. When he got a little fussy and was obviously finished, Eric reached to take him from her.

"No, daddy, let me do it. I can burp him. I watched mommy do it." Adriana told him.

"Adriana, please let me do this. His head is still really floppy, remember?" Eric said.

At this point, Patrick started crying. "Adriana. One...two..." Eric said, with a slight tone.

"Ohhh...kay" Adriana said, letting Eric take Patrick from her and getting off the couch. She went right over to Alyssa and lightly shook the bouncy seat. "Hey Lyssa!" she said, waking up her little sister.

"Adriana! Please...go color. I can handle them." Eric said, now starting to get pretty frustrated himself. He didn't want both babies crying because of something like this and he definitely didn't want to wake Calleigh up.

Adriana made her meanest face at Eric and ran out of the room, stomped up the stairs and when she got to the top yelled, "Eric! I am so MAD at you right now!" and slammed her bedroom door.

Eric could feel his face turning crimson. Had he not been holding his two week old son, Eric would have been up those stairs and placed a firm hand on her bottom. He'd never spanked her before, but this would certainly warrant that. Adriana rarely acted up and had never yelled at Eric or Calleigh before. He heard the door of his and Calleigh's bedroom open.

"Eric, what just happened down there?" he could hear Calleigh ask.

Eric laid a now quiet Patrick into the portable crib beside the couch and walked to the bottom of the stairs. Calleigh was halfway down the stairs so Eric met her the rest of the way.

"Adriana accidentally kicked the bouncy seat where Alyssa was, then she insisted that she could burp Patrick by herself which I'm not comfortable with her doing yet and then she woke Alyssa up. I asked her to go color so that she'd be out of the way for a little while. I feel like I've been on her case since she got home, which is probably why she just stormed off and yelled at me."

Calleigh let out a deep breath. "I know she feels like she has to walk on egg shells around here with the twins, but she cannot get away with the way she just acted. Mind if I talk to her?" Calleigh asked.

'I guess so. I'll go ahead and get a bottle ready for Alyssa." Eric told her.

Calleigh went back up the stairs and poked her head into Adriana's room. She didn't immediately see her, but them saw her foot sticking out from under her bed.

"Adriana," Calleigh said softly. "Come out. Mommy needs to talk to you." Calleigh sat on Adriana's bed and waited. "Adri. Please. Mommy is not mad at you, but you need to come out so we can talk."

Calleigh could hear her sliding around under her bed before finally sliding out. She slowly got onto the bed and curled up on Calleigh's lap.

"Adriana, what happened when mommy was taking a nap?" Calleigh asked her.

"Daddy wouldn't let me burp Patrick and then he made me go color. He doesn't want me near him." Adriana told her.

"Oh... hmm. I don't think that's what daddy meant. Didn't we already have a talk about not burping the babies right now because they are too small?"

"Yes m'am." Adriana said.

"And didn't we talk about being careful around the babies because we don't want them to get hurt?" Calleigh said, firmly but still a touch of sweetness.

"Yes, momma, but I didn't _mean_ to bump into Alyssa."

"I know you didn't mean to, but she was asleep, and daddy told me that you bumped into her and then a little while later, you shook her bouncy seat and she woke up. Did that happen?"

"Yes m'am."

"Adri, honey. I know this has been hard for you, because for a long time you were the only little one around here, but now you have a baby brother and a baby sister and you have to help me and daddy with them so they can learn and grow and be happy. Do you understand that?"

"Yes."

"So when mommy or daddy or anyone else asks you to be careful with Patrick and Alyssa or if we tell you that you are not allowed to do something with them you need to listen the first time." Calleigh was now at eye level with Adriana. "If you break that rule, you'll have a very big time out and you might even get a spanking."

"Okay, mommy."

"Good girl. Okay, Adriana, you were ugly to daddy and yelled at him. Also, he is your daddy and you may call him daddy, not Eric. You need to sit in your room for 4 minutes. When this timer goes off," Calleigh set her digital timer for the four minutes, "You may come downstairs and you need to apologize to daddy. Do you understand?"

Adriana nodded her head yes and looked as if she was going to cry. She rarely needed to be put in time out except for an occasional occurrence. The rule was, Calleigh and Eric agreed, that minutes in time out would be equal to the child's age. Since Adriana was 4, she would sit in her room for 4 minutes.

Calleigh shut her door and met Eric downstairs.

"Well?" Eric asked.

"Well, she thinks you don't want her around you, that's why she got so frustrated, but she had no right to stomp up the stairs and yell. She's in her room for four minutes and then she has to apologize to you." Calleigh told him as she picked up Alyssa.

"Hey sweetheart, how's my little angel?" Calleigh cooed sweetly.

" I can't believe she yelled at me and said what she said. You've never said that you were _so mad _at me before like she just did so I have no idea where she got that from. It really surprised me. I'm glad you handled that, because I think I would have spanked her. Then I would have felt worse, because I'd see my hand print on her leg. I just..." Eric said.

"I know. It's hard. This has been a big adjustment for everyone and I guess she reached her breaking point. She's just going to have to understand that she can't yell like that again." Calleigh said.

"Yeah, really. Hey, buddy. What's up little man?" Eric said, picking up Patrick, kissing him and then laying him back into his crib.

----

Around four minutes later, Adriana appeared in the living room. She shyly walked to Calleigh and hid behind her.

"Adri, do you have something you need to tell daddy." Calleigh asked.

"Sorry." She whispered.

"I don't think he heard you. Why don't you go over to him and tell him?" Calleigh said, moving to the side and nudging Adriana from behind her.

Adriana walked over to Eric and with her head down, whispered "sorry" again. She looked up at Eric and tears fell down her face.

Eric pulled her towards him and picked her up, sitting her on his lap. "Adriana," he said firmly, "You hurt my feelings today. I was very upset. I forgive you but you have to promise me that you will never yell at me like that again."

Adriana nodded her head. True to her nature, she cried silently in Eric's arms. Eric rocked her back and forth.

"You still love me, right daddy?" Adriana finally said.

"Of course, Adri. You know mommy and daddy will always love you no matter what." Eric told her. "I know it's hard for you with Patrick and Alyssa here, but I promise it will get easier. They just a lot of attention right now since they're really little."

Adriana breathed in deeply and let it out slowly. "Daddy?" she asked, "Will you color with me?"

Eric looked at Calleigh, "Well that was a quick turn around." he said, then looked back at Adriana, "You know what, I'd love to color with you."

"Okay!" Adriana said excitedly as she pulled Eric's arm, "Come on! Come on!"

"You sure you're good with the little ones for a few minutes?" Eric asked Calleigh.

"Yeah, we'll be fine." Calleigh said with a smile. "Go color." She sorted through some magazines and found the remote to the television and clicked it on, leaned back on a pillow with Alyssa sleeping soundly on her chest and watched TV, halfway listening to Adriana chatter on with Eric, a sound she knew she would never get tired of hearing.


End file.
